Robelle User Manual
Mainos
Mainos
Suprtool 4.6.01 for HP-UX:
User Manual
by Robelle Solutions Technology Inc.
Program and manual copyright © 1981-2002 Robelle Solutions Technology Inc.
Permission is granted to reprint this document (but not for profit), provided that copyright notice is given.
Qedit and Suprtool are trademarks of Robelle Solutions Technology Inc. Oracle is a trademark of
Oracle Corporation, Redwood City, California, USA. Other product and company names mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
Robelle Solutions Technology Inc.
Suite 372, 13711-72nd Ave.
Surrey, B.C. Canada V3W 2P2
Phone: 604.582.1700
Fax: 604.582.1799
Support: 800.453.8970
E-mail: [email protected]
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.robelle.com
Contents
Welcome to Suprtool
1
Introduction ...............................................................................................................................1
Suprtool Components ................................................................................................................1
STExport - Data Export Utility ...................................................................................1
Suprlink - Multidataset Access....................................................................................2
Documentation...........................................................................................................................2
User Manuals...............................................................................................................3
Change Notice .............................................................................................................3
Printed Documentation................................................................................................3
Online Documentation in HTML Help Format ...........................................................3
CD or Web Download .................................................................................................3
Notation .....................................................................................................................................3
Software Updates.......................................................................................................................4
News Memos .............................................................................................................................4
New in Version 4.6.01 ...............................................................................................................4
New in Version 4.6 ....................................................................................................................5
Change Notice .............................................................................................................5
Installing Suprtool
7
Who Needs To Use These Instructions......................................................................................7
Summary of Installation Steps...................................................................................................7
Step 1: Log In as Root ...............................................................................................................7
Step 2: Create Robelle Directory ...............................................................................................7
Step 3: Restore Files ..................................................................................................................8
HP-UX 10.0 and 10.10 ................................................................................................8
Step 4: Set the ROBELLE Variable...........................................................................................8
Bourne and Korn Shells...............................................................................................8
C Shell .........................................................................................................................8
Getting a Quick Start with Suprtool
9
How to Run Suprtool .................................................................................................................9
What is a Task?..........................................................................................................................9
Copying Files...........................................................................................................................10
Copying One File ......................................................................................................10
Appending to a File ...................................................................................................10
Fields in Data Files ..................................................................................................................10
What is a Self-Describing File?.................................................................................10
Creating an SD File ...................................................................................................10
Define Fields in a Data File.......................................................................................10
Create an SD File from a Data File ...........................................................................11
Repeating Commands..............................................................................................................11
Repeating a Command ..............................................................................................11
Selecting Database Records.....................................................................................................12
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual Contents
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• Index
Select All Records .....................................................................................................12
Look at the First Few Records...................................................................................12
Selecting by Criteria ................................................................................................................13
Simple Criteria...........................................................................................................13
Complex Criteria .......................................................................................................13
String of Digits ..........................................................................................................13
Selecting by Date .....................................................................................................................13
Select by Today's Date ..............................................................................................14
Select by Particular Date ...........................................................................................14
Select by Year............................................................................................................14
Select Prior Month.....................................................................................................14
Selecting by Lists of Values ....................................................................................................15
Finding Data Based on a List.....................................................................................15
Finding Data Based on a File.....................................................................................15
Finding Data Based on Another Table’s Criteria ......................................................16
Finding Data in a Data File........................................................................................16
Sorting Database Records ........................................................................................................16
Sort Records ..............................................................................................................16
Sort Records in Descending Order ............................................................................17
Sort by Multiple Keys................................................................................................17
Duplicate Records....................................................................................................................17
Report without Duplicate Records.............................................................................17
Report Only the Duplicate Records...........................................................................18
Report Only the Unique Records...............................................................................18
Report Only the Duplicates and Their Originals .......................................................19
Deleting Duplicate Data File Records .......................................................................19
Decimal Places.........................................................................................................................20
Converting Numbers................................................................................................................20
Counts and Subtotals................................................................................................................21
Count and Subtotal on Sort Keys...............................................................................21
Sort by Count or Subtotal ..........................................................................................21
Total by Field ............................................................................................................21
Listing Records ........................................................................................................................22
Changing the Output Record Format .......................................................................................22
Producing a Condensed Table Listing .....................................................................................23
Simple Reports.........................................................................................................................23
Your First Report.......................................................................................................23
Column Headings ......................................................................................................24
Printing Mailing Labels .............................................................................................24
Running Suprtool under HP-UX
27
Running Suprtool.....................................................................................................................27
Configuring Different Shells....................................................................................................27
Bourne and Korn Shells.............................................................................................27
C Shell .......................................................................................................................27
Setting Up a PATH for Suprtool..............................................................................................28
Bourne and Korn Shells.............................................................................................28
C Shell .......................................................................................................................28
Control Characters and stty......................................................................................................29
Suprmgr Configuration Files ...................................................................................................29
On-Line vs. Batch Access........................................................................................................29
Command Line Options...........................................................................................................29
Initial Command Line: -ccmdstring..........................................................................29
Default Outcount File Name: -oc .............................................................................30
Exit with Verify: -v...................................................................................................30
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual
Combining -c and -v..................................................................................................30
HP-UX Notes...........................................................................................................................30
Shell Commands........................................................................................................30
Hardcoded File Names and ROBELLE Variable ....................................................................31
ROBELLE Variable ..................................................................................................31
/opt/robelle/suprmgr ..................................................................................................31
/opt/robelle/help/suprtool ..........................................................................................31
Outcount File.............................................................................................................31
Differences Between MPE and HP-UX...................................................................................32
Record Length ...........................................................................................................32
Line Feeds .................................................................................................................32
Duplicate Output Files...............................................................................................32
Classic Reals..............................................................................................................32
Input from Stdlist.......................................................................................................33
Missing Features........................................................................................................33
Suprtool Issues and Solutions
35
A Suprtool Task.......................................................................................................................35
Input Choices.............................................................................................................35
Processing Selections ................................................................................................35
Output Choices ..........................................................................................................35
Large File Support ...................................................................................................................36
Suprtool and Allbase................................................................................................................36
Data-Types ................................................................................................................36
Date and Time Types.................................................................................................37
Restrictions................................................................................................................37
Suprtool and Oracle .................................................................................................................37
Data-Types ................................................................................................................37
Number Data-Type....................................................................................................38
Order By vs. Sort.......................................................................................................38
Restrictions................................................................................................................38
SDUnix Utility.........................................................................................................................39
Installation.................................................................................................................39
SDUnix Parameters ...................................................................................................40
LF vs. NOLF .............................................................................................................40
Examples ...................................................................................................................40
Link vs. Query...........................................................................................................41
Suprtool and Self-Describing Files..........................................................................................41
Create an SD File from a Table .................................................................................41
Create an SD File from a Data File ...........................................................................41
SD Files as Input .......................................................................................................42
Listing SD Files.........................................................................................................42
Decimal Places and Date Formats .............................................................................42
Restrictions of SD Files.............................................................................................42
Suprtool and Sorting Files .......................................................................................................43
Suprtool and Personal Computers............................................................................................43
Downloading to the PC .............................................................................................43
Decimal Places ..........................................................................................................43
Spreadsheets ..............................................................................................................43
Paradox Databases.....................................................................................................44
Suprtool and PowerHouse Applications ..................................................................................44
Suprtool with Quiz/QTP............................................................................................44
Step 1: Create a Subfile with Quiz ............................................................................45
Step 2: Output Erase in Suprtool ...............................................................................45
Step 3: Report with Quiz ...........................................................................................45
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Using QTP to Create Subfiles....................................................................................45
Creating Subfile with Script File ...............................................................................45
Quiz: Generating Suprtool Commands......................................................................46
Year 2000 Solutions with Suprtool..........................................................................................46
What If I Have Four-Digit Years? .............................................................................46
What does Set Date Cutoff do? .................................................................................47
Stddate and Set Date Cutoff ......................................................................................47
What does Set Date ForceCentury do? ......................................................................47
What If I Have Two-Digit Years? .............................................................................48
What Is Wrong with Two-Digit Years?.....................................................................48
How Do $Today and $Date Work? ...........................................................................49
Will Suprtool Generate an Error for Two-Digit Year Dates?....................................49
How Do I Use $Today and $Date with yymmdd Dates?...........................................49
aammdd Date Format ................................................................................................50
Invalid Dates..............................................................................................................50
Can Suprtool Convert Two-Digit Years to Four Digits? ...........................................50
Case 1: Converting a J2 Date from yymmdd to ccyymmdd .....................................50
Case 2: X6 yymmdd Data to X8 ccyymmdd ............................................................52
Case 3: Different Date Formats X6 MMDDYY Data to X6 YYMMDD.................53
Year 2000 Testing .....................................................................................................55
Performance Issues ..................................................................................................................55
Sort Performance .......................................................................................................56
Oracle Performance ...................................................................................................56
Analyzing Performance Data.....................................................................................56
Performance Summary ..............................................................................................57
Suprtool Commands
59
General Notes ..........................................................................................................................59
Abbreviating ..............................................................................................................59
Uppercase or Lowercase............................................................................................59
Multiple Commands per Line....................................................................................59
Continuation ..............................................................................................................60
Comments on Command Lines .................................................................................60
HP-UX Commands....................................................................................................60
Calculator ..................................................................................................................61
Control-Y Interrupt....................................................................................................61
Add Command [Add] .............................................................................................................62
Examples ...................................................................................................................62
Base Command [BA]..............................................................................................................63
Before Command [B]..............................................................................................................65
Chain Command [C]...............................................................................................................67
Define Command [D] .............................................................................................................69
Delete Command [DEL] .........................................................................................................74
Do Command [DO] ................................................................................................................76
Duplicate Command [DU]......................................................................................................77
Edit Command [ED] ...............................................................................................................81
Exit Command [E] ..................................................................................................................82
Export Command [EXP].........................................................................................................84
Extract Command [EXT]........................................................................................................85
Constants ...................................................................................................................85
Dates..........................................................................................................................87
Range of Fields..........................................................................................................89
Numeric Expressions.................................................................................................90
String Expressions .....................................................................................................92
Data Conversion ........................................................................................................94
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual
Form Command [F] ................................................................................................................97
Get Command [G] ................................................................................................................ 100
Help Command [H] .............................................................................................................. 102
If Command [IF]................................................................................................................... 103
Expressions.............................................................................................................. 103
Constants ................................................................................................................. 106
Subscripts ................................................................................................................ 107
Numeric Expressions............................................................................................... 107
String Expressions................................................................................................... 110
Date Selection.......................................................................................................... 113
Long Expressions .................................................................................................... 118
Input Command [I] ............................................................................................................... 120
Item Command [IT].............................................................................................................. 122
Date Formats ........................................................................................................... 122
Decimal Places ........................................................................................................ 125
Notes........................................................................................................................ 126
Key Command [K] ............................................................................................................... 128
Link Command [LIN]........................................................................................................... 130
List Command [L] ................................................................................................................ 131
Format ..................................................................................................................... 131
LaserJet Listings...................................................................................................... 132
Headings in Listings................................................................................................ 133
Simple Reports ........................................................................................................ 134
List Device .............................................................................................................. 135
Listredo Command [LISTREDO]......................................................................................... 137
Numrecs Command [N]........................................................................................................ 138
Open Command [OP] ........................................................................................................... 139
Output Command [O] ........................................................................................................... 140
Put Command [P] ................................................................................................................. 146
Q Command [Q] ................................................................................................................... 147
Redo Command [REDO]...................................................................................................... 148
Reset Command [R] .............................................................................................................151
Select Command [SEL] ........................................................................................................ 152
Set Command [S].................................................................................................................. 153
Allbase..................................................................................................................... 156
Arithmetic................................................................................................................ 156
Baseclose................................................................................................................. 156
Blocksize ................................................................................................................. 156
Buffer ...................................................................................................................... 156
Date Cutoff.............................................................................................................. 157
Date ForceCentury................................................................................................... 158
Date IfYY2000Error................................................................................................ 158
Date MapToPHDate8 .............................................................................................. 159
Defer........................................................................................................................ 159
DumpOnError.......................................................................................................... 159
Eofread .................................................................................................................... 159
Filecode ................................................................................................................... 159
Filename .................................................................................................................. 159
Firstrec..................................................................................................................... 160
Hints ........................................................................................................................ 160
Ifcheck..................................................................................................................... 160
Ignore ...................................................................................................................... 160
ItemAbbreviateDate ................................................................................................ 160
Interactive................................................................................................................ 160
LabelledTapeRewind............................................................................................... 161
Limits ...................................................................................................................... 161
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• Index
List...........................................................................................................................161
List Date ..................................................................................................................162
List PCL ..................................................................................................................162
List Time .................................................................................................................163
Lock.........................................................................................................................163
NLS .........................................................................................................................163
Openmode................................................................................................................164
Oracle ......................................................................................................................164
Pattern......................................................................................................................164
Prefetch....................................................................................................................165
Privmode..................................................................................................................165
Progress ...................................................................................................................165
Prompt .....................................................................................................................166
Recover....................................................................................................................166
Redo.........................................................................................................................166
Sortfast.....................................................................................................................167
Squeeze....................................................................................................................167
Statistics...................................................................................................................167
Subsystem................................................................................................................167
Suspend ...................................................................................................................167
Userlabels ................................................................................................................168
Varsub .....................................................................................................................168
Warnings..................................................................................................................168
Sort Command [SO] .............................................................................................................169
Table Command [TA]............................................................................................................171
Adding Individual Values to a Table.......................................................................171
Adding Values from a File ......................................................................................172
Total Command [T] ...............................................................................................................175
Update Command [UP].........................................................................................................177
Use Command [U] ................................................................................................................178
Userpause Command [USER] ..............................................................................................180
Verify Command [V]............................................................................................................181
Xeq Command [X]................................................................................................................182
Calculator Command [=] .......................................................................................................183
Suprtool Errors and Warnings
187
Two Types Of Messages........................................................................................................187
Errors .....................................................................................................................................187
Warnings................................................................................................................................188
Welcome to STExport
189
Welcome to STExport............................................................................................................189
Documentation.......................................................................................................................189
CD or Web Download .............................................................................................189
Printed Documentation ............................................................................................189
Online Documentation in HTML Help Format .......................................................190
Help Command........................................................................................................190
Notation .................................................................................................................................190
Installing STExport................................................................................................................190
Accessing STExport
191
How To Run STExport ..........................................................................................................191
How to Xeq an STExport Task ..............................................................................................191
Hardcoded File Names and ROBELLE Variable ..................................................................191
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual
ROBELLE Variable ................................................................................................ 192
Using STExport in Batch....................................................................................................... 192
Introduction to STExport
193
Importing Data....................................................................................................................... 193
Input File................................................................................................................................ 193
Data-Types............................................................................................................................. 193
Formatting Commands .......................................................................................................... 194
Commands ............................................................................................................................. 194
Performance Considerations .................................................................................................. 194
STExport Commands
197
General Notes ........................................................................................................................ 197
Abbreviating............................................................................................................ 197
Uppercase or Lowercase.......................................................................................... 197
Comments on Command Lines ............................................................................... 197
HP-UX Commands.................................................................................................. 198
File Names............................................................................................................... 198
Calculator ................................................................................................................ 198
Control-Y ................................................................................................................ 198
Before Command [B] ........................................................................................................... 199
Columns Command [C]........................................................................................................ 201
Date Command [DA]............................................................................................................ 202
Decimal Command [DEC].................................................................................................... 204
Delimiter Command [DE] .................................................................................................... 205
Do Command [DO] .............................................................................................................. 206
Exit Command [E]................................................................................................................ 207
Exit Abort [EA] ....................................................................................................... 207
Exit Suspend [ES] ................................................................................................... 207
Exit Xeq [EX].......................................................................................................... 207
Floating Command [FL] ....................................................................................................... 209
Form Command [F] .............................................................................................................. 210
Heading Command [HEA] ................................................................................................... 211
Help Command [H] .............................................................................................................. 213
HTML Command [HT] ........................................................................................................ 214
Dynamic Web Pages................................................................................................ 215
Web Server.............................................................................................................. 216
Shell Script .............................................................................................................. 217
Perl Script................................................................................................................ 219
CGI Script ............................................................................................................... 220
Input Command [I] ............................................................................................................... 222
Listredo Command [LISTREDO]......................................................................................... 223
Output Command [O] ........................................................................................................... 224
Quote Command [Q] ............................................................................................................ 225
Redo Command [REDO]...................................................................................................... 226
Reset Command [R] .............................................................................................................227
Set Command [S].................................................................................................................. 228
Mapped.................................................................................................................... 228
Redo ........................................................................................................................ 228
Statistics .................................................................................................................. 229
Varsub ..................................................................................................................... 229
Warnings ................................................................................................................. 229
Xmltagchar .............................................................................................................. 230
Sign Command [SI] .............................................................................................................. 231
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• Index
Spaces Command [SP]..........................................................................................................232
Use Command [U] ................................................................................................................233
Verify Command [V]............................................................................................................234
Xeq Command [X]................................................................................................................235
XML Command [XML] .......................................................................................................236
Zero Command [Z] ...............................................................................................................238
Example of STExport Output
239
Example .................................................................................................................................239
Limits Within STExport
243
Maximums .............................................................................................................................243
Welcome to Suprlink
245
Welcome to Suprlink .............................................................................................................245
Documentation.......................................................................................................................245
CD or Web Download .............................................................................................245
Printed Documentation ............................................................................................245
Online Documentation in HTML Help Format .......................................................246
Help Command........................................................................................................246
Terminology and HP-UX.......................................................................................................246
Notation .................................................................................................................................246
Installing Suprlink..................................................................................................................246
Hardcoded File Names and ROBELLE Variable ..................................................................247
ROBELLE Variable ................................................................................................247
Accessing Suprlink
249
How To Run Suprlink............................................................................................................249
How to Xeq a Suprlink Task..................................................................................................249
Suprtool Link Command........................................................................................................249
Exit with Verify .....................................................................................................................249
Using Suprlink in Batch.........................................................................................................250
Introduction to Suprlink
251
How Report Programs Work .................................................................................................251
Input Files ..............................................................................................................................251
Link Files ...............................................................................................................................251
Output Files ...........................................................................................................................252
Sort Keys ...............................................................................................................................252
Selection Logic ......................................................................................................................252
A Link Example.....................................................................................................................252
Performance Considerations ..................................................................................................253
Another Example ...................................................................................................................254
Illegal Digits ..........................................................................................................................254
Selecting Non-Matches..........................................................................................................254
Suprlink with Quiz/QTP ........................................................................................................255
Suprlink Commands
259
General Notes ........................................................................................................................259
Abbreviating ............................................................................................................259
Uppercase or Lowercase..........................................................................................259
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual
Continuation ............................................................................................................ 259
Comments on Command Lines ............................................................................... 260
HP-UX Commands.................................................................................................. 260
File Names............................................................................................................... 260
Calculator ................................................................................................................ 260
Control-Y ................................................................................................................ 260
Before Command [B] ........................................................................................................... 262
Do Command [DO] .............................................................................................................. 264
Exit Command [E]................................................................................................................ 265
Exit Abort [EA] ....................................................................................................... 265
Exit Suspend [ES] ................................................................................................... 265
Exit Xeq [EX].......................................................................................................... 265
Form Command [F] .............................................................................................................. 266
Help Command [H] .............................................................................................................. 268
Input Command [I] ............................................................................................................... 269
Link Command [L] ............................................................................................................... 270
Listredo Command [LISTREDO]......................................................................................... 272
Output Command [O] ........................................................................................................... 273
Redo Command [REDO]...................................................................................................... 274
Reset Command [R] .............................................................................................................275
Set Command [S].................................................................................................................. 276
Mapped.................................................................................................................... 276
Redo ........................................................................................................................ 276
Statistics .................................................................................................................. 277
Varsub ..................................................................................................................... 277
Use Command [U]................................................................................................................ 278
Verify Command [V]............................................................................................................ 279
Xeq Command [X] ............................................................................................................... 280
Example Suprlink Output
281
Example ................................................................................................................................. 281
Limits Within Suprlink
283
Maximums ............................................................................................................................. 283
Glossary of Terms
285
Commonly-used Terms ......................................................................................................... 285
Special Characters ................................................................................................................. 288
Index 293
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual Contents
• ix
Welcome to Suprtool
Introduction
Welcome to version 4.6.01 of Suprtool -- the HP-UX handyman for Eloquence,
Oracle and Allbase databases and fixed-length data files. Use Suprtool to quickly select and sort data records. Combine multiple data files using Suprlink/UX. Use
STExport to convert fields in a self-describing input file into an output file that can be imported into other applications.
The Suprtool commands are:
Before EXTract SELect Xeq
Chain Form LISTREDO :MPE or HP-
UX command
Define Get Numrecs
DELete Help OPen TAble
DUplicate Input Put UPdate
EDit ITem Q Use
The minimum abbreviation of each command is shown in capital letters.
Suprtool Components
The Suprtool package consists not only of Suprtool, but also of other programs that perform useful database functions. These other programs are STExport and Suprlink.
STExport - Data Export Utility
STExport converts fields in a self-describing input file into an output file that can be imported into different applications.
Use STExport to produce a formatted output file that can be used to import data into databases and applications.
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool Welcome to Suprtool
• 1
Other databases have different requirements for the format of input data. You will have to experiment with the various STExport formatting options to find a format that your particular database tool accepts.
Summary of the STExport commands:
Before Form Quote Verify
Columns Heading Redo Xeq
Date Help Reset Xml
Delimiter HTML Set Zero
Floating Output Use
Suprlink - Multidataset Access
Suprlink is a program that works with Suprtool to add "multidataset" capability to
Suprtool. Suprlink is not a set of callable routines. To use it, you must :run
Suprlink.Pub.Robelle or use Suprtool's Link command.
Rather than take the regular path to multiple datasets -- random retrieval via IMAGE keys -- with its well-known performance problems, we have chosen to follow a different path: fast serial extracts plus a very efficient merge. The tests that we have performed indicate that this method is often significantly faster than the "official"
IMAGE method of chasing down chains and hash synonyms.
To understand what Suprlink does, think of the process of writing a report. Your report program (written in COBOL, RPG, PowerHouse, or some other language) hunts all over the database with DBFIND and DBGET to collect your data.
It would be faster if the report program could just read a sorted disc file with a big record containing all the data necessary for the report, and this is Suprlink's function.
Suprtool can extract the desired fields from the desired records of the sales detail dataset and put them in a disc file. Then Suprtool can extract the desired fields from the customer master dataset and write them to a second disc file. If Suprtool sorts both files by customer, Suprlink can "link" them together, producing a third file whose composite record consists of the related fields from both files. This file is just what we need to feed into the report program. For example, a sales report program might read a disc file whose records consist of sales transactions plus customer information. This file has been sorted by customer number and date. If there are several sales for the same customer, the customer information is just repeated in each record. The report program reads the records, checks for level breaks, and formats and prints the records.
Documentation
Suprtool comes with User Manuals and a Change Notice. You may have received printed copies of these.
They are also available as PDF or HTML Help files. You may have received a documentation CD with these files, or you can download the files from the Robelle web site.
2
• Welcome to Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
User Manuals
The user manuals contain the full description of all the Suprtool commands, as well as usage tips. The manuals are up-to-date with all the latest changes incorporated in
Suprtool. To see only the changes in the latest version, see the "What's New" section of the manual, or see the change notice.
Change Notice
For a complete description of the latest changes made to Suprtool, the installation instructions, and any compatibility issues, see the change notice that was included with the release.
Printed Documentation
The latest user manuals and change notice are available in Adobe PDF format. If you do not already have the Adobe Acrobat Reader, you can get a copy from http://www.adobe.com/prodindex/acrobat/readstep.html
.
Online Documentation in HTML Help Format
The Suprtool user manuals and change notice are available in HTML Help format.
Support for compiled HTML help (CHM files) is built into recent versions of
Windows.
CD or Web Download
If you received a documentation CD with this version of Suprtool, you will find the documentation files on the CD. The installation program will start automatically when you insert the CD into the drive. If it does not start automatically, run
D:\setup.exe, where D is the letter assigned to your CD-ROM drive.
If you do not have a documentation CD, you can download the files from the Robelle web site at http://www.robelle.com/library/manuals/ .
Notation
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
The Suprtool documentation uses a common notation in describing all commands.
Here is a sample command definition:
EXTRACT field [(subscript)] [=value] [,...]
1. UPPERcase letters - literal symbols to be used in the command as they appear (e.g., EXTRACT).
2. Lowercase, underlined or italic - "variables" to be filled in by the user
(example: field). Each such "variable" is defined elsewhere in terms of literal symbols (consult the index). In the help file, underlining and italics are not available and variables appear simply in lowercase.
3. Brackets - enclose optional fields (example: [(subscript)]).
4. Braces - enclose comments in examples. For example, >INPUT
ACTREC {input from a data file}. Braces can be used for comments in actual Suprtool commands.
Welcome to Suprtool
• 3
5. Up lines - separate alternatives from which you select (example: Set
Ignore [On|Off]); sometimes, the alternatives are shown listed on several lines.
6. Dot-dot-dot (...) - indicates that the variable may be repeated many times in the command.
7. Other special characters - literal symbols that must appear in the command as they are shown in the format (example: the comma above). Some commas in Suprtool are optional.
In examples, there is an implied carriage return at the end of each line.
Software Updates
As HP continues to release new versions of MPE and HP-UX, you might be wondering how all these operating system changes affect tools such as Suprtool. This is just one reason to have our software support. This service entitles you to many benefits, including regular updates of Suprtool. Each release includes new features, as well as providing support for a changing HP environment. If you are a second site within a large organization, you can either pay for your own support or get support and updates from your internal central site.
News Memos
Do you receive a copy of What's Up, DOCumentation?, our regular news memo about Robelle, MPE, and HP-UX? We distribute our news memos only to sites with current service. Your copy may be going to your corporate headquarters.
New in Version 4.6.01
• Suprtool would incorrectly coerce large negative numbers from a
Packed field to another Packed or Display field.
• Suprtool would fail with prefetch point failure if the file had an uneven record size and an uneven blocking facter.
• STExport now properly converts the Roman 8 universal monetary symbol to the Euro-Symbol in the HTML and XML commands.
• The Item command would fail if a definition or Item command was already issued for a field, if the input source was a selfdescribing file and and extract range was used or all items from a dataset were extracted.
• The XML command would fail to convert ">" to ">" and "<" to
"<".
• The XML and HTML commands failed to convert "&" to "&".
4
• Welcome to Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
New in Version 4.6
• HP Eloquence database on HP-UX is now supported, similar to the
IMAGE database on MPE.
Change Notice
For a complete description of the latest changes, the update installation instructions, and any compatibility issues, see the change notice that was included with the
release. To print a change notice, see the "Documentation" section on page 2.
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Installing Suprtool
Who Needs To Use These Instructions
The system manager should use the following installation instructions to install
Suprtool/UX. No one can be using Suprtool/UX during the installation. The installation should only take a few minutes.
Summary of Installation Steps
Installing Suprtool involves the following steps:
1. Log in as root.
2. Create the correct directory structure.
3. Restore Suprtool/UX and its associated files from the distribution tape.
4. Set the ROBELLE variable in order to let Suprtool know where its supporting files are.
Step 1: Log In as Root
There are two ways to log in as root:
1. Exit from HP-UX, and log in with root as the user name.
2. If you are already logged in, you can execute this command: su -
In either case, you have to supply the user password for root.
Step 2: Create Robelle Directory
Before restoring files, you must first create the directory where Suprtool/UX will reside:
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mkdir /opt/robelle
Step 3: Restore Files
Use the following command to restore the Suprtool/UX files from the distribution tape: tar xv /opt/robelle
This command assumes your tape device is /dev/rmt/0m. If it is not, you need to specify your tape device using the f option in the tar command. For example, if your tape device is /dev/rmt/1m, you need to use the following command to restore the files: tar xvf /dev/rmt/1m /opt/robelle
HP-UX 10.0 and 10.10
Your tape has two copies of Suprtool. The version in /opt/robelle runs only on HP-
UX 10.20 and later. The version of Suprtool in the /usr/robelle directory is compatible with HP-UX 9.x to 10.10.
The naming convention for third-party programs on HP-UX has changed from /usr to
/opt. If you want to use Suprtool in the /opt directory, you need only the following commands: mv /usr/robelle /opt ln -s /opt/robelle /usr/robelle
Step 4: Set the ROBELLE Variable
You must set the ROBELLE environment variable so that Suprtool can find its help and suprmgr files. How you set this variable depends on where you have installed
Suprtool.
Bourne and Korn Shells
export ROBELLE=/opt/robelle
C Shell
setenv ROBELLE /opt/robelle
If you install Suprtool in any other directory, you must set the ROBELLE environment variable to that directory.
Details of how to set up the PATH and MANPATH variables are included in the chapter "Running Suprtool Under HP-UX."
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Getting a Quick Start with
Suprtool
How to Run Suprtool
Use the following command to access Suprtool:
/opt/robelle/bin/suprtool
SUPRTOOL/Copyright Robelle Solutions Technology Inc. 1981-2001.
(Version 4.5) SUN, JUN 17, 2001, 11:47 AM Type H for help.
Licensee: The Shum Co.
Today's Hint. To see ALL of the options available in Suprtool, use >VERIFY ALL.
>
Suprtool prints its version number and the current time right after a banner. It also prints the name of the company that has licensed this copy of Suprtool.
Suprtool then prompts with ">". Press Return after typing each command. For example, if you type the help command:
>help
Suprtool prints some help text and a keyword list. Type a keyword or press Return to leave Help.
To exit Suprtool, type "Exit" at the Suprtool prompt.
>exit
What is a Task?
Tasks are the building blocks with which Suprtool helps you to solve data processing problems. In a task, Suprtool reads information from a file or database, selects and processes some information, and writes out the result. You can visualize a Suprtool task like this:
Input
Records
Suprtool selects and processes
Output
Records
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The examples that follow all consist of Suprtool tasks. Simple solutions require only one task. Complex solutions consist of several tasks, often with the output of one task becoming the input for the next task.
Copying Files
Copying One File
Use the Input command to specify a data file.
>input file1,reclen 80, nolf
>output result
>xeq
The Output command creates the file called "result", which is a copy of the input file.
Appending to a File
To append to an existing file, use the Append option in the Output command.
>input file2, reclen 80, nolf
>output result,append
>xeq
Fields in Data Files
What is a Self-Describing File?
A self-describing (SD) file is actually a pair of files, one with data and the other with field information. These files have the advantage of behaving like data files, which can provide field information to Suprtool without you having to Define all the fields.
The Input command is also simpler because there is no need for either the Reclen or the LF parameters.
Creating an SD File
To create an SD file, use the Link option in the Output command.
>select * from sales
>output result,link
>xeq
Now the data file "result" has the same field names as the Sales table. Suprtool can read this data file and know about the fields automatically.
>input result
>if sales_total>20000 and product_price<5000
>output custlist
>xeq
Define Fields in a Data File
A regular data file does not have any field information associated with it. If you need to work with the fields in a data file, you need to tell Suprtool about the fields using
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the Define command. For example, say you have a data file with lines that look like this:
12345678John Rutherford <32>
98765432Catherine Smith <29>
| | | |
Account First name Last name Age
8-byte 12-byte 16-byte 2-byte integer
Use these Define commands to tell Suprtool about the fields:
>input datafile, reclen 38, lf
>define account, 1, 8, byte
>define first_name, 9, 12, byte
>define last_name, 21, 16, byte
>define age, 37, 2, int
| | | |
field name | Length |
Start Data-type
position
Now you can use the field names "account", "first_name", "last_name", and "age" to refer to the corresponding parts of the line, just as if this were a database record.
>input datafile
>define ...
>if age>65
>ext account, last_name
>output result
>xeq
Create an SD File from a Data File
To create an SD file from a data file, follow these steps:
1. Define the fields that you want to include in the SD file.
2. Extract the fields in the order you want.
>input datafile, reclen 38, lf
>define account, 1, 1, byte
>define first_name, 9, 12, byte
>define last_name, 21, 16, byte
>define age, 37, 2, int
>extract account, age, first_name, last_name
>output result,link
>xeq
Repeating Commands
Repeating a Command
Use the Listredo command to see a list of your most recent commands. Use the Do command to repeat a command, or use the Redo command to modify a command before repeating it.
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>listredo {20 most recent commands}
>listredo input {most recent Input commands}
>input result
>...
>xeq
>do input {repeat previous Input command}
>input result
>if quantity > 10000
>...
>redo if {modify previous If command, then repeat}
If you have used two commands that begin with the same letter, you have to be careful when repeating those commands. Make sure you use enough letters to identify each command distinctly from the other. In the following example, if you wish to repeat the Input command instead of the If command, you need to use "do i s" instead of just "do i".
>i somefile
>if <expression>
>...
>xeq
>do i s {repeats previous Input command}
Selecting Database Records
These examples show you how to get records from an Oracle table. It assumes you have opened the database with the Open command. The results are written to a data file called "result", which can be read either by a program or by a report writer.
/opt/robelle/bin/suprtool
>open oracle demo reader
Select All Records
This example extracts all the records from the table. Note that we didn't specify any selection criteria, so Suprtool selects all the records.
>select * from sales {input table}
>output result {output file}
>xeq {Xeq command performs the task}
Look at the First Few Records
If you want to look at the first few records of a dataset, use the Numrecs command.
This command tells Suprtool to extract at most the number of records specified.
Then, instead of sending the result to a file, send it to the screen with "output
*,ascii". The example shows you how to look at the first 10 records in your dataset.
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>select * from sales
>numrecs 10 {first 10 records}
>output *,ascii {output to screen, format numbers}
>xeq
Selecting by Criteria
Simple Criteria
To tell Suprtool to choose records based on certain criteria, you can either use any valid SQL command (e.g., select, where), or you can select all the records and use an
If command. In these two examples Suprtool extracts all records with a sales_total value greater than 20000 from the Sales table. Both tasks produce identical results, but one way may be faster than the other.
>select * from sales
>if sales_total > 20000
>output result
>xeq
Complex Criteria
To choose records using more complex criteria, combine several simple criteria using AND, OR, NOT, and parentheses. In this example Suprtool extracts all records that have a sales_total value greater than 20000 and a product_price value less than
5000 from the d-sales dataset.
>select * from sales
>if sales_total>20000 and product_price<5000
>output result
>xeq
String of Digits
If you have a byte-type field that consists entirely of digits, and you want to use this field as a numeric field, you need to define a new display field on top of the existing field. For example, suppose your data looks like the following, where the customer account number is stored in the 8-digit byte-type field at the start of the record:
20476789...rest of customer record...
To find all customers with an account greater than 20470000, you would do the following:
>select * from table
>define accountnum, account, 8, display
>if accountnum > 20470000
>output result
>xeq
Selecting by Date
The following section on dates does not apply to SQL columns, only to defined fields and SD fields. Disc files usually store dates as numeric or character fields; you can use the Define command to isolate the field.
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Before Suprtool can use a date field, it has to know the format of a particular date field. Use the Item command to specify the format. For example, to tell Suprtool that the item purch_date is a date field with a format of yyyymmdd (e.g., 20010319), you would use:
>define purch_date, 11,8 {8 bytes, starts in byte 11}
>item purch_date, date, yyyymmdd {date format}
In the following date examples, we show the Define and Item commands in each example. In practice, however, you only need to use these commands once per date field, not once per task.
Select by Today's Date
For this example, select all the sales records whose purchase date is today. Note the use of $today in the If command to indicate today's date.
>input saledata,reclen 70,nolf
>define purch_date, 11,8
>item purch_date,date,yyyymmdd
>if purch_date = $today {select today's date}
>output result
>xeq
Other tricks with $today
>if purch_date = $today(-1) {yesterday}
>if purch_date = $today(+1) {tomorrow}
Select by Particular Date
To specify a particular date, use the $date function in the If command. The $date function has the form $date(year /month /day). This example selects all the sales transactions for August 12, 2000.
>input saledata,reclen 70,nolf
>define purch_date, 11,8
>item purch_date,date,yyyymmdd
>if purch_date = $date(2000/08/12)
>output result
>xeq
Select by Year
Suppose we want to select all the sales transactions for 2000. Suprtool does not have a short-hand for specifying "everything in that year". To specify an entire year, use a date range from January 1st to December 31st.
>input saledata,reclen 70,nolf
>define purch_date, 11,8
>item purch_date,date,yyyymmdd
>if purch_date >= $date(2000/01/01) and &
purch_date <= $date(2000/12/31)
>output result
>xeq
Select Prior Month
In the $date function, use a * to indicate the current year, month, or day. Similarly, a
*-1 means the previous year, month, or day. For this example, select all the sales
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transactions for the prior month. Note the use of the special keywords "first" and
"last" to indicate the first and last day of the month.
>input saledata,reclen 70,nolf
>define purch_date, 11,8
>select * from sales
>item purch_date,date,yyyymmdd
>if purch_date >= $date(*/*-1/first) and &
purch_date <= $date(*/*-1/last)
>output result
>xeq
Selecting by Lists of Values
Sometimes you want to find records based on criteria contained in another file or table.
Finding Data Based on a List
Suppose we want to find all orders for the customers "1234", "9876", and "5555."
We simply use a list of values after the equal sign in the If command. A match is made if a customer matches any one of the values in the list.
>select * from order_details
>if cust_no = "1234", "9876", "5555"
>output orders
>xeq
If we wanted to find orders for all customers except "1234", "9876", and "5555", we would simply change the equal sign in the If command to a not-equal sign. A match is made if a customer does not match any values in the list.
>select * from order_details
>if cust_no <> "1234", "9876", "5555"
>output orders
>xeq
Finding Data Based on a File
If you have a large list of values in a file, you can load them into Suprtool and select data based on this list. First use the Table command to load values from an external file into a table. Then use the $lookup function of the If command to match data to the table.
Suppose our list is in a self-describing file called Custlist. We create a programtemporary table called cust_table. Note that this is not the same as an Oracle table.
>select * from order_details
>table cust_table, cust_no, file, custlist
>if $lookup(cust_table, cust_no)
>output orders
>xeq
If you want to find all customers not on the list, just negate the If condition.
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>if not $lookup(cust_table, cust_no)
Finding Data Based on Another Table’s Criteria
Sometimes you need to find data from one table based on conditions from another table. This is a typical example: you want to find all of the pending orders for those customers whose accounts receivable balance is 0.
First we find the customers with an AR balance of 0, and extract their customer numbers to a file.
>select * from receivables
>if ar_balance = 0
>ext cust_no
>output custlist,link
>xeq
Now we can find information by loading a file of customer numbers into a table and then applying the $lookup feature.
>select * from order_details
>table cust_table, cust_no, file, custlist
>if status="PENDING" and $lookup(cust_table,cust_no)
>output orders
>xeq
Finding Data in a Data File
So far, the examples have looked up data from a table. If you want to look up information in a data file, you need to tell Suprtool about the fields. Use the Define command to do this.
The following example gives you some idea of the byte-size of one kind of record in a data file.
John Smith 12345678
Anna-May Richardson 98765432
12-bytes 16-bytes 8-bytes
If you want to look up customers based on a list of customer numbers in the selfdescribing file Custlist, use the following task. Notice how the start position and number of bytes is entered into the Define command. This defines the position within the input file, not the table file.
>input flatfile, reclen 36, nolf
>define cust_no, 29, 8, byte
>table cust_table, cust_no, file, custlist
>if $lookup(cust_table, cust_no)
>output result
>xeq
Sorting Database Records
Sort Records
To tell Suprtool to sort table records, you can either use any valid SQL command
(e.g., select, order by), or you can select the records and use a Sort command. Here are two examples where Suprtool extracts all records from the Sales table into a data
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file called "result". The records are sorted by the field cust_account. Both tasks produce identical results, but one way may be faster than the other.
Sorting in the Select command:
>select * from sales order by cust_account
>output result
>xeq
Sorting in the Sort command:
>select * from sales
>sort cust_account
>output result
>xeq
Sort Records in Descending Order
This example extracts all records from the Sales table into a data file called "result".
The records are sorted by the field sales_total in descending order (i.e., show highest totals first). Use the Desc option in the Sort command to do this.
>select * from sales
>sort sales_total desc {descending order}
>output result
>xeq
Sort by Multiple Keys
This example extracts all records from the Sales table into a data file called "result".
The records are sorted by the field cust_account, then by sales_total in descending order. Use two Sort commands to do this because the Sort command only accepts one field at a time.
>select * from sales {input}
>sort cust_account {first sort key}
>sort sales_total desc {second sort key}
>output result {output}
>xeq
Duplicate Records
In the following examples, the key field is in the first four bytes of the record.
"Duplicate-ness" is based on records having the same key value. In any group of records with the same key value, the first record is considered to be the "original", and the rest are considered to be the "duplicates".
Report without Duplicate Records
This is an example of filtering out duplicated records (the original remains). This is done by using the None option of the Duplicate command.
Input Result
1111 a 1111 a
2222 b 2222 b
2222 c 3333 e
2222 d
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3333 e
>select * from table
>sort keyfield
>dup none keys
>output result
>xeq
Report Only the Duplicate Records
This is an example of keeping only the duplicated records (the original is not kept).
This example is the opposite of the previous example. Use the Only option of the
Duplicate command to do this.
Input Result
1111 a 2222 c
2222 b 2222 d
2222 c
2222 d
3333 e
>select * from table
>sort keyfield
>dup only keys
>output result
>xeq
Report Only the Unique Records
This example shows how to report only those records without duplicates. That is, if the records have duplicates, both the originals and their duplicates are omitted from the report.
Input Result
1111 a 1111 a
2222 b 3333 e
2222 c
2222 d
3333 e
You have to use two Suprtool tasks to accomplish this. The first task creates an intermediate file Dupfile that contains the keys of the duplicate records. The second task creates the desired output file Result that contains only the unique records.
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>select * from table
>sort keyfield
>extract keyfield
>dup only keys
>output dupfile
>xeq
>get dataset
>table dup-table, keyfield, sorted, dupfile
>if not $lookup(dup-table, keyfield)
>output result
>xeq
Report Only the Duplicates and Their Originals
This performs the opposite function to the one outlined above. It keeps only the duplicates and their originals.
Input Result
1111 a 2222 b
2222 b 2222 c
2222 c 2222 d
2222 d
3333 e
Once again, you have to use two Suprtool tasks to accomplish this. The first task creates an intermediate file Dupfile that contains the keys of the duplicate records.
The second task creates the output file Result that contains only duplicate files and their originals.
>select * from table
>sort keyfield
>extract keyfield
>dup only keys
>output dupfile, link
>xeq
>select * from table
>table dup_table, keyfield, sorted, dupfile
>if $lookup(dup_table, keyfield)
>output result
>xeq
Deleting Duplicate Data File Records
The following tasks read the file Datafile and create two new files. The file named
"result" does not have duplicate records. The other file named "archive" has only the duplicate records.
Task 1: Identify which records to delete.
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>input datafile,reclen 38, nolf
>define key1,1,8
>define key2,13,12
>define rec,1,38 {length of the record}
>ext rec
>sort key1
>sort key2
>dup only keys
>out dupfile, link
>xeq
Task 2: Write records to archive.
>input datafile, reclen 38, nolf
>table duptab, rec, sorted, dupfile, hold
>if $lookup(duptab, rec)
>output archive
>xeq
Task 3: Delete the records.
>input datafile
>if not $lookup(duptab, rec)
>output result
>xeq
Decimal Places
Data in disc files often has an implied number of decimal places. For example, dollar amounts usually have two implied decimal places for the cents. In this case, the number stored is scaled by a factor of one hundred (e.g., you would enter 10000 to represent $100.00).
>input saledata, reclen 70, nolf
>def total_sales, 40, integer
>if total_sales > 99900 {find sales > $999}
>out result
>xeq
You can use Suprtool's Item command to identify defined fields that have an implied number of decimal places. Once you do this, you can then enter regular, unscaled numbers. For example, to enter five cents, use 0.05; to enter $100.00, use 100. If a field is a dollar and cents amount scaled by 100, use the following to tell Suprtool about the decimal place:
>item total_sales, DECIMAL, 2
With the Item command, the previous example becomes more understandable:
>input saledata, reclen 70, nolf
>def total_sales, 40, integer
>item total_sales, decimal, 2
>if total_sales > 999 {find sales > $999}
>out result
>xeq
Converting Numbers
There are several ways to convert binary numbers (e.g. I2, P8) into human-readable
ASCII form. You can use STExport's Output,ASCII or Output,DISPLAY if you want to convert all numbers.
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If you want to convert only some of your numeric fields, you can use Suprtool's numeric conversion feature to convert the binary fields to display fields. define mynumber,1,6,display get dataset ext some-fields... ext mynumber = binary-number output filename xeq
Note that this technique also works for converting a number from one numeric type to another numeric type.
Counts and Subtotals
Count and Subtotal on Sort Keys
This example counts the number of sales transactions for each customer and produces the total sales for each customer. We use the Count and Total options of the
Duplicate command. Note that we made the output file self-describing so we can easily work with it later.
>input transactions {self-describing file}
>ext cust_account
>sort cust_account {need to sort by key}
>dup none keys count total sales_total
>list standard
>out result, link
>xeq
The output file contains three fields. The first field is the cust_account that we extracted. Suprtool created two new fields at the end of each output record: st-count and st-total-1. St-count contains the number of times each cust_account occurred, while st-total-1 contains the total sales for each cust_account.
Sort by Count or Subtotal
When Suprtool counts or subtotals, the output is sorted according to the key fields. If you want your output file to be sorted by the count or by a total, you must process the output file with a second task. The following example sorts the previous file of totals by ST-COUNT. We choose a descending sort sequence, so that we can see first the customers with the largest number of orders.
>input result {input from previous task}
>sort st-count, desc {highest counts appear first}
>list standard {produce a simple report}
>xeq
Total by Field
If you want to get a single total for a field, without caring about subtotals on sort breaks, you can use the Total command. Total prints out the result on $stdlist. For example, to compute the total sales value for 2000 transactions, use these commands:
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>select * from sales
>if purch_date>=000101 and purch_date<=001231
>total sales_total
>output $null
>xeq
Listing Records
You can print selected input records either formatted or with the Octal, Hex,
Decimal, or Character representations. To dump all sales records with a negative amount, use these commands:
>select * from sales
>if sales_total < 0
>list lp
>xeq
This finds the entries that meet the selection criteria and prints them to the default line printer, showing column names and column values converted to ASCII. If you suspect that your data is bad, you can dump the records in Octal/Char format instead:
>select * from sales
>if sales_total < 0
>list octal,char
>xeq
If you want the listing in column format, use List Standard:
>select * from sales
>if sales_total < 0
>list standard lp
>xeq
Changing the Output Record Format
You can change the output file record format by using the Extract command. The
Extract command causes Suprtool to assemble Output records by stringing together fields extracted from Input records. You would use the following to extract two of the nine fields from the customer records:
>select * from customer {input from a table}
>extract cust_account {extract the key value and}
>extract credit_rating { one other field}
>output out1 {output file will have two fields}
>xeq
You can easily insert data into the middle of a record, again using the Extract command. Define the first and second halves of the record as two big chunks. Now
Extract the first part, note the constant you wish to insert, then Extract the second part.
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>input myfile, reclen 95, nolf {95 bytes wide}
>define part1,1,60,byte {first 60 bytes}
>define part2,61,35,byte {remaining 35}
>extract part1, "constant", part2 {extract an 8-byte constant}
>output newfile {103 bytes now}
>xeq
Producing a Condensed Table Listing
When debugging test databases, it is often desirable to produce a condensed listing of a table on $stdlist. The following example combines the Extract command with the ASCII output option (i.e., all binary and packed-decimal data is converted into readable ASCII characters). For readability, each data value is prefixed with an abbreviated column name. This listing is more compact than the one produced by the
List command.
>select * from customer
>extract "Account=",cust_account," "
>extract "C/R=",credit_rating
>output *,ascii {* implies $stdlist}
>xeq
The output would look like:
Account=04598921 C/R= 500000
Account=44657844 C/R= 2000000
Account=98753198 C/R= 300000
Simple Reports
You can produce simple reports with Suprtool's List command. You select the records for the report with the If command and the fields for the report with the
Extract command. Reports can include running headings with the date, title, and page number and an optional line of column headings. Suprtool can produce default titles and headings.
>select * from customer
>extract cust-account
>extract credit-rating
>list standard
>xeq
The output would look like this:
Jan 17, 2000 11:59 Page 1
CUST_ACCO CREDIT_RATING
4598921 5000.00
44657844 20000.00
98753198 3000.00
Your First Report
Our report selects all customers in California, sorts the records by city, and reports on the city, account number, and name of each California customer:
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>select * from customer {input table}
>if state = "CA" {California customers}
>sort city {sort by city name}
>extract city {city first on each line}
>extract cust_account {followed by account#}
>extract name_first {and first name}
>extract name_last {and finally last name}
>list standard {produce a quick report}
>xeq
These commands produce a report with four columns. The title consists of the date and page number. The column headings are the name of each column that we extracted.
Column Headings
Column headings default to uppercase field names. The names are truncated if they are longer than the field itself. One space is inserted between fields.
Suprtool does not automatically align user-specified headings with the data columns.
We suggest specifying heading strings with the same length as the fields they represent, while taking into account the space between the data columns.
In our example, we enter one column heading per line (using Suprtool's continuation character "&"):
>list standard,heading &
{----+----1----+----2}
"City " & {field is X12}
"Account " & {field is Z8}
"First Name " & {field is X10}
"Last Name" {field is X16}
We included one space between fields. Note that an extra space was needed for the
Account heading (it is an 8-digit field, but we used 10 characters). Because cust-account is a zoned-decimal field, an extra space is required for the sign.
Printing Mailing Labels
You can print mailing labels by combining the Extract command with the List
Oneperline command. We assume that each mailing label starts with two blank lines, followed by the customer name and address, followed by another blank line. The
Suprtool commands to produce the labels are as follows:
>select * from customer {input customers}
>extract " " {first field}
>extract " " {second field}
>extract customer_name {name first}
>extract street_address(1) {three lines of address}
>extract street_address(2)
>extract street_address(3)
>extract " " {last blank field}
>list oneperline, noname, noskip, norec
>xeq
The extract " "
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• Getting a Quick Start with Suprtool
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line creates a single field that consists of a blank space. Each of these blank fields results in a blank line on our mailing labels, since the List command puts one field on each output line.
If you want to combine two fields on one line, you would first have to create an output file with the combined fields and use this file as input to List Oneperline.
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Running Suprtool under HP-UX
Running Suprtool
To run Suprtool for HP-UX, type this command:
/opt/robelle/bin/suprtool
Suprtool. Copyright Robelle Solutions Technology Inc. 1981-2001.
(Version 4.5) Type ? for help.
>
Suprtool prints its version number and prompts with ">". Press Return after each command you type. For example, if you type
>help
Suprtool prints some Help text and a keyword list. Type a keyword for more specific information, or press Return to leave Help.
Configuring Different Shells
When you log in to HP-UX, a shell program is invoked. This program interprets commands, executes them, and controls command execution. To make configuration changes, you have to know which shell you are using and what files are automatically executed.
Bourne and Korn Shells
The Bourne and Korn shells execute the file /etc/profile when you log in to HP-UX.
Then they look for a .profile file in your home directory. If it exists, the file is executed. If you use SAM to add new users, the file /etc/d.profile is automatically copied to the home group of the new user. If you want to make global changes to the commands executed at login time, you should change two files:
/etc/profile {always executed at login time}
/etc/d.profile {default .profile for new users}
C Shell
The C shell executes the file /etc/csh.login when you log in to HP-UX. First it looks for the .login file in your home directory. If the file exists, it is executed. Then the C
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shell executes the .cshrc file in your home directory (also executed any time you invoke a new copy of /bin/csh). If you use SAM to add new users, the files
/etc/d.login and /etc/d.cshrc are automatically copied to the home group of the new user. If you want to make global changes to the commands executed at login time, you should change these files:
/etc/csh.login {always executed at login time}
/etc/d.login {default .login for new users}
/etc/d.cshrc {default .cshrc for new users}
Setting Up a PATH for Suprtool
You can invoke Suprtool with the command:
/opt/robelle/bin/suprtool
If you just type suprtool to invoke Suprtool/UX, you must either add /opt/robelle/bin to your PATH or copy
/opt/robelle/bin/suprtool to a directory that is currently on your PATH. Similarly, the man pages for Suprtool are in /opt/robelle\/man\/man1\/suprtool.1. To make the man pages available to everyone, you can either add /opt/robelle/man to your MANPATH or you can copy the man pages to a directory that is currently on your MANPATH.
Bourne and Korn Shells
See Configuring Different Shells (above) for a discussion on the files that are automatically executed by the Bourne and Korn shells. The easiest way to change the two PATHs for all the users on your HP-UX machine is to logon as root, and add these two lines to the file /etc/profile after any existing PATH or MANPATH statements:
PATH=$PATH:/opt/robelle/bin
MANPATH=$MANPATH:/opt/robelle/man
Remember to delete any PATH or MANPATH settings in /etc/d.profile so that new users do not override your changes. You also have to warn existing Bourne and Korn shell users to change the .profile file in their home directories.
C Shell
See Configuring Different Shells (above) for a discussion on the files that are automatically executed by the C shell. The easiest way to change the two PATHs for all the users on your HP-UX machine is to logon as root, and add these two lines to the file /etc/csh.login after any existing PATH or MANPATH statements: set path ($path /opt/robelle/bin) setenv MANPATH "$MANPATH":/opt/robelle/man
Remember to delete any PATH or MANPATH settings in both /etc/d.login and
/etc/d.cshrc so that new users do not override your changes. You also have to warn existing C shell users to change their .login and .cshrc files in their home directories.
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Control Characters and stty
Most HP-UX users have Control-D configured as the end-of-file character, and
Control-C as the interrupt character. If you use Robelle-style modify, you must reassign Control-D to a different control character. If you are familiar with MPE, you may want to assign Control-Y as your interrupt character. A standard shell configuration file (.profile for Bourne and Korn shells, and .login for the C shell) usually contains a line like: stty erase "^H" kill "^U" intr "^C" eof "^D" swtch "^Z"
To change both the end-of-file and interrupt characters, you should change the "intr" and "eof" control keys as follows: stty erase "^H" kill "^U" intr "^Y" eof "^E" swtch "^Z"
Note that many programs require an end-of-file signal. Many introductory books on
UNIX assume that Control-D signifies the end-of-file. Once you have changed the control character, remember to use Control-E for the end-of-file (at least Control-E is easy to remember since end-of-file starts with the letter "E").
Suprmgr Configuration Files
When you run Suprtool, it automatically "uses" this configuration files if it exists:
/opt/robelle/suprmgr
The system manager usually creates /opt/robelle/suprmgr, and puts Suprtool commands in it to set Suprtool options. To check the options for your site, examine this configuration file.
On-Line vs. Batch Access
You normally run Suprtool as an on-line session. You type Suprtool commands on your terminal, and Suprtool prints responses on your terminal. If you redirect stdin or stdout, Suprtool assumes that it is in batch.
Suprtool in batch is almost identical to Suprtool on-line, except for answering questions. When Suprtool asks a question in batch, it does not expect an answer from stdin because no one is there to answer. Suprtool assumes that you want your batch task to complete, so it always selects the option that completes the command successfully. This is normally a "yes" answer, as in "yes, purge the file". Suprtool prints the question on stdout, as well as the answer that it has selected for you.
Command Line Options
You can invoke Suprtool/UX with various options. The syntax for invoking
Suprtool/UX is suprtool [-cv]
Initial Command Line: -ccmdstring
You can specify commands by using the -c option followed by the actual commands.
There must be no space between the -c and the command list.
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If there is a space within the command, the whole command must be enclosed in single or double quotation marks; otherwise, the quotation marks are optional. Here are some examples: suprtool -c"use usefile" suprtool -c"set prompt $"
Default Outcount File Name: -oc
If you want to know how many records Suprtool has processed, use the -oc option.
This option sets the file name for outcount to ".stoutcount". After a successful task,
Suprtool writes the number of output records to the .stoutcount file. You can then use this file in shell scripts to check for specific record counts.
For example, suppose that you want to check for at least ten records from an Oracle database. You would write a shell script like:
#!/bin/sh
#
# Select records from an Oracle table and check that there
# are at least ten. suprtool -oc << !EOD open oracle scott tiger select * from emp if sal > 1000.00 output /dev/null exit
!EOD if [ `cat .stoutcount` -ge 10 ]; then
echo "More than 10 records found" fi
Exit with Verify: -v
Some users inadvertently Exit from Suprtool by entering the Exit command instead of Xeq. To prompt for Exit approval, use the -v option. suprtool -v
>e
Okay to exit [no]:
>
Combining -c and -v
You can combine both the -c and -v options with the following command: suprtool -c"use usefile" -v
HP-UX Notes
This section describes Suprtool/UX features that interact with the HP-UX environment.
Shell Commands
You can execute shell commands by typing them anywhere you type a Suprtool command. If a command is both a shell and Suprtool command, you must precede the shell command by an exclamation mark (!) or a colon (:). Shell commands are
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executed by your default shell (the one configured in /etc/passwd for your user name).
$suprtool
>whoami {these 3 commands are identical}
>!whoami
>:whoami
>set ... {does Suprtool's Set command}
>!set ... {does HP-UX's Set command}
Shell commands are executed by a child copy of your shell. Child shells cannot change environment variables in the parent's environment. To change the value of an environment variable, you must first exit Suprtool.
Hardcoded File Names and ROBELLE Variable
Some file names are hardcoded into Suprtool. This section describes the hardcoded file names that Suprtool/UX may need. Suprtool will normally look for files in the
/opt/robelle directory unless you set the ROBELLE variable.
ROBELLE Variable
Normally Suprtool looks files in the /opt/robelle directory. If you move Suprtool you must set the ROBELLE variable. export ROBELLE="/users/robelle"
/opt/robelle/suprmgr
This is an optional file that is designed to contain configuration commands. You cannot change this file name. If you move Suprtool/UX to a different directory you must set the ROBELLE variable so Suprtool may find this file.
For example, if you move Suprtool to the /users/robelle directory you must set the
ROBELLE variable in the following manner: export ROBELLE="/users/robelle"
You can then put your suprmgr file in the /users/robelle directory.
/opt/robelle/help/suprtool
This is the name of the Suprtool/UX Help file. You can override this name by using
Set Filename Help or set the ROBELLE variable as outlined previously.
/set filename help /usr/local/help/suprtool
Outcount File
If you want to automatically check the number of output records that Suprtool produced, you must produce an outcount file. This file contains a string with the number of output records that Suprtool processed.
By default, no outcount file is produced. If you invoke Suprtool/UX with the "-oc" option, Suprtool writes the number of output records to a file called ".stoutcount."
Use Set Filename Outcount to specify your own file name for the output count.
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If you add Set Filename Outcount to the Suprmgr file, every successful invocation of
Suprtool/UX produces a file. While these files are small, they may clutter up a busy system so that is why the default file name is none.
Differences Between MPE and HP-UX
We have tried to make the MPE and HP-UX versions of Suprtool as compatible as possible. This section describes how Suprtool/UX is different from Suprtool/MPE.
Record Length
On MPE, Suprtool can obtain the record length of a file. There is no concept of record length on HP-UX because a file consists of a string of bytes. In Suprtool/UX, there are two ways to determine the record length.
1. Specify the record length with the Rec parameter of the Input command.
If the specified record size is incorrect, Suprtool/UX cannot verify it. The most common symptom of an incorrect specification in size is an offset of one or more characters in each field.
Line Feeds
In MPE, there is no separator between records in a file. In HP-UX, there may not be a separator, or there may be a line feed between each record. For Suprtool to correctly read a data file, it must know whether the line feeds are present. You can specify whether or not a file has line feeds via the LF or NOLF options in the Input command.
Suprtool and STExport allow control over whether or not line feeds will be written to the output file or not. For details please see the Output Commands for both Suprtool and STExport.
Duplicate Output Files
If the output file already exists (and you haven't requested the Erase or Append option), Suprtool has to decide what to do. This is how Suprtool/UX handles duplicate output files:
1. In Suprtool/UX, the duplicate output file processing takes place at the beginning of a task (in Suprtool/MPE it occurs at the end).
2. If Suprtool/UX is in batch, it purges any existing file with the same file name (Suprtool/MPE chooses a new output file name of the form
OutputNN). If the Suprtool/UX task is on-line, it prompts the user to purge the file.
3. When Suprtool/UX purges a data file, it always deletes any associated
.sd file, even if the output option is not Query or Link.
Classic Reals
Suprtool/UX does not support Classic real numbers (real or long). If you are porting data files from MPE to HP-UX, you should first convert any Classic floating point
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numbers to their IEEE floating point equivalents. You can do this by using the
Extract command on Suprtool/MPE.
:run suprtool.pub.robelle
>base sample
>get customer
>define ieee-credit-rating,1,4,ieee
>extract cust-no
>extract name-first
>extract name-last
>extract ieee-credit-rating = credit-rating
>out mpefile
>xeq
The Classic and IEEE floating point formats are not identical. Be sure to check the
IEEE values after converting them from Classic floating point.
Input from Stdlist
In Suprtool/MPE, "input *" means read the input data from the stdin input device.
This is usually a job stream, and data is terminated by an !EOD symbol.
Suprtool/UX does not support reading data from stdin (via Input * or any other method). If you need to create temporary data in the middle of a script, it is easy to use a temporary file. For example, the following script creates a temporary file, writes three lines of data to it, then uses this file as input to Suprtool/UX. At the end of the script we make sure that we remove the temporary file that we created.
#!/bin/sh datafile=`mktemp` echo "1234567 Line 1" >> $datafile echo "2345678 Line 2" >> $datafile echo "3456789 Line 3" >> $datafile suprtool << !EOD input $datafile,rec 14,lf define key ,1,7 define line ,8,7 extract key extract line list standard exit
!EOD rm $datafile
Missing Features
The following Suprtool features on MPE are currently not available in Suprtool/UX:
• Edit command (Dbedit)
• Extracting a range of fields from an SQL database
• Export command (STExport exists as a separate program)
• Hints are not available
• Link command (Suprlink exists as a separate program)
• Table Command with the File option requires that the file being loaded is self-describing.
• Out= option of the Listredo command
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• 33
• Output Ask, Num,Key, and Num,Query
• Output Temp (There are no temporary files in HP-UX)
• Output =Input
• Totals to a file
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Suprtool Issues and Solutions
A Suprtool Task
Suprtool's primary function is to extract data quickly; its focus is batch extraction.
The key principle is: the bigger the input data source and the smaller the subset of
data selected, the more performance improves.
Your aim is to replace serial reads and selection with Suprtool. To do this, break your task into components: an input choice, some processing selections, and the
output choice.
Input Choices
Suprtool reads fixed-length data files. You can create self-describing files with
Suprtool's Query or Link output options. It is easier to work with self-describing files because they have information about the fields in each input record.
Often you select a subset of the input records using the If command. Only selected records are passed to the processing stage and the output choice.
Processing Selections
If you do not specify any processing, the input records are quickly copied to the output choice. Some of your processing choices are
1. Sort the records into ascending or descending sequence (Sort or Key).
No records are output until all of the selected input records have been sorted.
2. Total one or more input record fields (Total).
3. Remove or select duplicate records (Duplicate).
Output Choices
Usually you wish to extract a subset of your records to feed into a report program, so the default output file is a data file. The default output file format matches the input file format, unless you use the Extract command. You can specify different formats for the output file by qualifying the Output command. To have readable ASCII output, use "output xxx,ascii". To produce "self-describing" files, use Output xxx,Link.
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By default, every output record is identical to the corresponding input record. The
Extract command assembles output records by stringing together fields extracted from the input records. With the Extract command you can insert constant values into the output record.
Each output record is written to the output choice. You can also see a formatted listing of each record with the List command.
Large File Support
Suprtool can read, sort and write files greater than 2Gb on HP-UX 10.20 or higher.
Suprtool is limited to processing large files with 2.1 billion records or less.
Suprtool and Allbase
Specify an Allbase database with the Open command. Once Suprtool has opened the database, use the Form command to obtain information about the tables in the database. Use the Select command to choose what data to read from your Allbase database.
We have tested the Allbase module with Allbase version G.1.09 for HP-UX. We believe that it will be compatible with future versions of Allbase. We have not tested
Suprtool with any of the F versions of Allbase. Allbase access is available as a separate add-on module to Suprtool.
Data-Types
When you specify a Select command, Suprtool figures out how to translate the
Allbase internal data-types into ones that Suprtool can process. Not all Allbase datatypes can be processed by Suprtool. The following table lists the Suprtool data-type that corresponds to the Allbase data-type:
Allbase Data-Type Suprtool Data-type
Integer Double
Smallint Integer
Char Byte
Varchar Byte
Real Ieee-32
Float Ieee-64
Decimal Packed
Numeric Packed
Date Byte
Time Byte
Datetime Byte
Interval Byte
Long binary Not Supported
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Long varbinary Not Supported
Date and Time Types
Allbase has four types of fields that are associated with dates and times. These fields are converted to byte-type data and are returned with specific lengths.
The date and time fields are returned with the following byte lengths:
Data-Type Length
Restrictions
Suprtool cannot currently handle all Allbase database concepts. The current restrictions are:
1. Suprtool requires that the ownername be specified when selecting a particular table in the following manner:
>select * from purchdb.orders
In this example the owner is purchdb and the tablename is orders.
2. Suprtool does not currently handle the Allbase date format. You can convert the Allbase date format to something that Suprtool can handle with the TO_CHAR function in the Select statement. For example:
>select qty,TO_CHAR(date,'YYYYMMDD') from manufdb.testdata
>def mydate,date[1],8 {redefine testdate }
>item mydate,date,yyyymmdd {define the date format}
>if mydate<=$today(-900)
Suprtool and Oracle
You specify an Oracle database with the Open command. You can open any Oracle database to which you normally have access. If you cannot open your Oracle database, check with your system or database administrator so that your environment can be set up properly. Once Suprtool has opened the database, use the Form command to obtain information about the tables in the database. Use the Select command to choose what data to read from your Oracle databases.
Oracle access is available as a separate add-on module to Suprtool.
Data-Types
When you specify a Select command, Suprtool figures out how to translate the
Oracle internal data-types so that Suprtool can process them. Not all Oracle data-
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types can be processed by Suprtool. The following table lists the Oracle data-type and the corresponding Suprtool data-type:
Oracle Data-Type Suprtool Data-Type
Varchar2 Byte
Number Varies, see below
Long raw Not supported
Char Byte
Number Data-Type
Oracle numbers are translated into a variety of Suprtool data-types. The translation depends on the precision of the number and the number of decimal places. The following table describes the translation for each case:
Precision Decimal Places Suprtool Data-Type
None
1-4
5-9
1-9
10-27
28-38
Any
Zero
Zero
Non-zero
Any
Any
8-byte IEEE
2-byte Integer
4-byte Integer
Packed-decimal
Packed-decimal
8-byte IEEE
In packed-decimal translations Suprtool uses the precision of the number to determine the size of a packed-decimal number.
Order By vs. Sort
Oracle's Order By statement on the Select command does not always generate the same results. Specifically, sorted fields with null field values appear at the beginning when they are sorted by Suprtool's Sort command.
Restrictions
Suprtool/UX cannot handle all Oracle database concepts. The current restrictions are:
1. Suprtool/UX can handle varchar2, char, date, and number data-types. It cannot handle any other data-type.
2. Because any Oracle Select command can be used, it is possible to generate column names that are not compatible with Suprtool/UX. For example,
>select sal + comm from bonus
This example produces a column called "sal + comm". In some cases Suprtool/UX correctly uses this as the column name (e.g., the List command). You cannot refer to
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this column by name in any Suprtool/UX command that accepts field names as a parameter.
SDUnix Utility
SDUnix is an MPE program that takes self-describing file information and writes it out to an MPE flat file. This flat file can then be transferred to HP-UX together with the data file so that Suprtool/UX can reference the self-describing information about the fields.
To copy the SD file to the HP-UX machine, it must have an .sd extension and be in the same directory as the data file. For example, if the data filename is
/usr/local/data/datafile, the SD file must have the name /usr/local/data /datafile.sd.
The SD file is written out to the same domain (permanent or temporary) as the input file. The SD file contains only one record with the necessary length to store all of the label information.
Installation
SDUnix has been included on your HP-UX tape and needs to be installed on your
MPE system. You can do this with either FTP or DSCOPY.
Installing using FTP
1) Log on as Mgr.Robelle
:hello mgr.robelle,pub
2) Remove the Sdunixnm file
:purge sdunixnm.pub
3) FTP the file from your Unix machine ftp dopey binary cd /opt/robelle/mpe get sdunixnm sdunixnm;rec=128,1,f,binary;code=nmprg;disc=1400
4) Remove any old versions of Sdunix
:purge sdunix
5) Rename the program file
:rename sdunixnm,sdunix
To install the CM version of SDUnix, specify Sdunixcm as the file name,
;disc=400,1,1 for the file size, and PROG for the filecode.
Installing with DSCOPY
1) Log on as Mgr.Robelle
:hello mgr.robelle,pub
2) Remove the Sdunixnm file
:purge sdunixnm.pub
3) Specify file command for proper program file size
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:file sdunixnm;disc=1400
4) DSCOPY the file from your Unix machine dscopy /opt/robelle/mpe/sdunixnm:hpux[user:password] to
*sdunixnm;bin;fcode=1030;rsize=256;fix;rep
5) Remove any old versions of Sdunix
:purge sdunix
6) Rename the program file
:rename sdunixnm,sdunix
To install the CM version of SDUnix, specify Sdunixcm as the file name,
;disc=400,1,1 for the file size, and 1029 for the filecode.
SDUnix Parameters
All SDUnix parameters are specified via Info = string. There are three parameters:
input-file sd-file LF | NOLF
The first parameter is the name of an MPE self-describing file. The second parameter is the name of the .sd file that SDUnix created.
LF vs. NOLF
Use the third parameter to specify whether the data file has LF (line feed) as the record separator, or whether the file does not use a file separator. If you use FTP to copy the data file to your HP-UX machine, you should specify the NOLF option and be sure to use a binary mode transfer. If you are using DSCOPY (with its default options) to copy the data file, you should specify the LF option.
Examples
The following section contains examples of creating an SD file on MPE, converting the SD information, and finally copying the two files to an HP-UX machine.
First create an SD file with:
:run suprtool.pub.robelle
>base store,5
Database password [;]?
>get d-inventory
>out dinv,link
>exit
Now you can convert the label information to an .sd file using the SDUnix utility.
Note that the data file is the first file passed in the info string.
Specify LF if you are using DSCOPY.
:run sdunix.pub.robelle;info="dinv dinvsd lf"
Now you can use DSCOPY to copy the files to the HP-UX machine.
:dscopy dinv to store.dinv :dopey[data:password]
:dscopy dinvsd to store.dinv.sd:dopey[data:password]
Specify NOLF if you are using FTP.
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:run sdunix.pub.robelle;info="dinv dinvsd nolf"
Use FTP to copy the files to the HP-UX machine.
:ftp dopey ftp> binary ftp> exitonerror ftp> put dinv /users/data/store.dinv ftp> put dinvsd /users/data/store.dinv.sd ftp> quit
Now you can use Suprtool/UX to read the SD file.
$ suprtool
>input store.dinv
>form
File: store.dinv (SD Version B.00.00) No line feeds
Entry: Offset
BIN-NO I1 1
LAST-SHIP-DATE I2 3
ON-HAND-QTY I2 7
PRODUCT-NO Z8 11
SUPPLIER-NO Z8 19
UNIT-COST P8 27
ITEM-DESC1 X20 31
ITEM-DESC2 X20 51
ITEM-DESC3 X20 71
ITEM-DESC4 X20 91
Entry Length: 110 Blocking: 1
>out dinvfile
>xeq
Link vs. Query
SDUnix and Suprtool/UX can recognize files created with the ,Query option and from Query. However, they cannot recognize compound item details or any Item attributes, such as Decimal or Date type.
Suprtool and Self-Describing Files
A problem with data files is that there is no field information. Self-describing files solve this problem by providing field information about the file. Suprtool reads and writes SD files; Suprlink requires SD files as input and creates an SD file as output.
Create an SD File from a Table
You request an SD file using the Link option of the Output command. If you extract columns from the table, only the extracted columns appear in the SD file.
>select * from sales {input from a table}
>output salefile,link {salefile has all of the columns from sales}
>xeq
Create an SD File from a Data File
You must Define and Extract the fields you want to have in the SD file. Use the Link option of the Output command to create the file as a self-describing file. Although
Suprtool itself allows longer field names, SD files only store the first 16 characters of a field name.
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>input sales.data,reclen 16,nolf {input from a data file}
>define cust_no,1,6,byte
>define invoice_date,7,6,integer
>define sales_qty,13,4,packed
>extract cust_no,invoice_date,sales_qty
>output salefile,link {salefile has all of the extracted columns}
>xeq
SD Files as Input
When you specify an SD file as input to Suprtool, all the field information becomes available. You can select, extract, and total fields without the Define command. In addition, the Input command no longer needs any Reclen or LF parameters.
>input salefile {self_describing file}
>form {display the fields in the file}
>if sales_total > 10000 {select based on a field}
>extract cust_account {only extract a few fields}
>extract sales_qty
>extract sales_tax
>extract sales_total
>total sales_total {total a field from the file}
>output newfile,link {create a new SD file}
>xeq
Listing SD Files
Suprtool normally lists data files in an Octal/Char format. When listing an SD file,
Suprtool produces a formatted listing with field names and field values converted into ASCII:
>input salefile {self-describing file}
>list {produce a formatted listing}
>xeq
Decimal Places and Date Formats
You use the Item command to identify items with an implied number of decimal places or a date format. If you create a self-describing file, this information is retained. When you input such a file, all Suprtool commands are automatically informed about the decimal places and date formats. The Form command shows these extra attributes as comments at the end of each field description. For example,
>input salefile {self_describing file}
>item deliv_date ,date ,yyyymmdd
>item purch_date ,date ,yyyymmdd
>item sales_tax ,decimal,2
>item sales_total,decimal,2
>output newfile,link {creates SD file with item attributes}
>xeq
>form newfile {shows decimal pts. and dates}
Restrictions of SD Files
So far in this section, we have shown how to create self-describing files using the
Link option of the Output command. The Link option produces a special form of self-describing file. Not all software can read this form of self-describing file. You can use the Query option to create an old-style self-describing file. The Query option has the following restrictions.
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Self-describing files were originally created by HP in MPE so that files could be fed into HPWORD and HP graphics packages. One problem with HP's definition was that no provision was made for compound fields (e.g., 10J2). When Suprtool creates an SD file with compound fields via the Query option, it uses a special data-type.
When you input such a file to Suprtool, all compound fields are treated as byte arrays. Suprtool correctly copies and extracts these fields, but you can not select with them. The Query option is not capable of retaining information about decimal places or date formats.
Suprtool and Sorting Files
When Suprtool sorts two records that have the same key value, the first record read by Suprtool is the first record on the output file. For data files, this means that input records with the same key values appear in the same order in the output file.
Suprtool and Personal Computers
You can format files to be downloaded to your PC for use in spreadsheets or databases with the PRN option of the Output command. Suprtool formats your file as a PC structure (a comma-delimited file). Not all PC applications support the PRN format. For more precise data conversion, create a self-describing file then use
STExport. See the STExport manual for details. You transfer the Suprtool output file to your PC and then import it into your PC application.
Downloading to the PC
After you have created a PRN file using Suprtool, you can use FTP or any of the many terminal emulator programs available to download the file to the PC. This includes Reflection from Walker Richer & Quinn.
Decimal Places
Be sure to specify which fields have decimal places when creating the PRN file.
Suprtool reserves extra space for decimal points that appear in the PRN output.
When formatting numeric fields, Suprtool inserts the decimal point at the correct place. When you import your file into your PC application, numeric fields are automatically formatted correctly.
Spreadsheets
The following procedure allows you to include literal headings in your spreadsheet using only one file, the size and shape of which is computed by STExport. We have tested this method with MS Excel; it should work with any spreadsheet that supports the importing of delimited files.
There are two steps. First, build a self-describing file with Suprtool, then use
STExport to convert it to PRN and add the headings.
1. In Suprtool build a self-describing file:
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>input ...
>define items...
>item items...
>extract fields...
>output sdfile,link
>xeq
2. In STExport convert to PRN and add the header line:
$input sdfile
$heading fieldnames
$output pcdata
$exit
The file Pcdata is a variable-length PRN file with both headings and data.
Paradox Databases
Paradox is a PC database product from Borland International. Paradox imports PRN files in one of two ways. Here are the advantages and disadvantages of each method:
1. Import the file into an existing table. This table must have been set up with all the field names, field lengths, and field types. As long as the corporate data structure doesn't change, this method works fine. It is less work than the second method, since you only have to set up the table structure once.
2. Import the file into a new table. Paradox reads the input file twice. The first time it determines the maximum length of each field. The second time it loads the data into the table. After the file is loaded, you must define the field names and possibly the field types. Fortunately, you can automate this part of the process with a script. While loading takes longer, each field is allocated enough space for the largest value, saving disc space.
We would recommend the second method if you are making a read-only copy of corporate data. This method helps protect the Paradox application from some changes in the corporate application (e.g., an expanded field length). The first method is needed if you want to change the data, since you need the ability to extend data fields.
Suprtool and PowerHouse Applications
You can use Suprtool to significantly speed serial extracts using Quiz and QTP from
Cognos. In many cases the changes to existing applications are minor.
Suprtool with Quiz/QTP
Quiz, QTP, and Quick are components of PowerHouse 4GL, a popular fourth generation language sold by Cognos. You can improve the performance of Quiz reports by using Suprtool to select and sort the records from a file or SQL table, and passing selected records to Quiz for final reporting. To do this, you need some way to tell Quiz about the record structure of Suprtool's output file. Quiz already has the capacity to do this without making any changes to the PowerHouse PDL dictionary.
In the following example, Suprtool extracts records from the Custmast file, sorts them, and writes them to the Cmasfile file. These are the records we need for the
Quiz report.
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Step 1: Create a Subfile with Quiz
The first step is to use Quiz to extract one entry from the Custmast file and write it to a PowerHouse "subfile". Note that you could also use QTP to build the subfile.
$rm cmasfile.sf
$rm cmasfile.sfd
$quiz
>access custmast
>report summary all
>set subfile name cmasfile keep
>set report limit 1
>go
This creates 2 files: Cmasfile.sf, containing the extracted data, and Cmasfile.sfd, containing the PowerHouse record definition for the data portion of the subfile. We use Suprtool to reload the Cmasfile.sf file with all the records required for the final report.
Step 2: Output Erase in Suprtool
Once you have created the PowerHouse subfile, use the Erase option of the Output command in Suprtool to load the file. This overwrites any data in the data portion of the subfile, but it does not affect the "dictionary" for that file.
$suprtool
>input custmast,reclen 80,nolf
>if credit_limit>=1000000
>sort custnum
>output cmasfile.sd,erase
>exit
Step 3: Report with Quiz
The Cmasfile.sf file now contains the sorted records for the Quiz report. Quiz can access the file because the Cmasfile.sfd containsthe record definition. You can now use Quiz to generate the report:
$quiz
>access *cmasfile
>report ...
>go
Using QTP to Create Subfiles
You can also use QTP instead of Quiz to create the PowerHouse subfile:
$rm cmasfile.sf
$rm cmasfile.sfd
$qtp
>access custmast
>set input limit 0
>subfile cmasfile keep include custmast
>go
Creating Subfile with Script File
The process of creating a subfile is essentially the same regardless of the input file being used. The only things that change are the subfile and input file names. Here is a script file for automating this task. This script can be executed before running
Suprtool or from within Suprtool.
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#!/bin/sh rm usefile echo set report limit 1 >usefile echo access $2 >>usefile echo set subfile name $1 keep >>usefile echo report summary all >>usefile echo go >>usefile echo exit >>usefile quiz <usefile
This script accepts two parameters: the name of the subfile to be created and the name of the file whose structure it will duplicate.
Makesub can be invoked from within Suprtool, as shown below:
$suprtool
>~:makesub~ cmasfile, custmast
>input custmast,reclen 80,nolf
>if credit_limit>=1000000
>sort custnum
>output cmasfile.sf,erase
>exit
Quiz: Generating Suprtool Commands
Suprtool does not have the ability to prompt users for selection criteria. You can easily create a short Quiz procedure to prompt for values and create a file of Suprtool commands.
> define D-PROMPT date format YYMMDD = &
> parm prompt "Enter selection date: "
> report &
> "input custmast,reclen 80,nolf" &
> skip "if DATEFIELD = " D-PROMPT pic "^^^^^^" &
> skip "output OUTFILE" &
> skip "xeq"
> set nohead
> set report device disc name STCODE
> set page length 0
> go
Quiz edits the user's input for a valid date. Note that there is no ACCESS statement, but Quiz still writes one record to the output file. Execute the resulting commands as a Suprtool usefile:
$suprtool < STCODE
Year 2000 Solutions with Suprtool
For this discussion we'll ignore the fact that the twenty-first century really only started in 2001.
☺
Suprtool often has to process dates in both the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. If you include the century in your dates, Suprtool should behave as most users expect.
If you do not include the century in your dates, how Suprtool behaves will be dependent on your specific application and data.
What If I Have Four-Digit Years?
If your dates have four-digit years, Suprtool should work as expected. Selection based on the $today or $date features will select dates in both the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Dates that do not collate correctly (e.g., mmddccyy) will not be accepted by Suprtool's If command for relative selection (e.g., <, <=, >, or >=). If
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
you have these date formats you can use the $stddate function, converts any date format to a ccyymmdd type date.
Suprtool, as it has always done, will continue to sort dates based on their numeric value and not on any implied date order.
In Suprtool 4.0, we introduced some new command parsing features that let you control how Suprtool parses the year of the $date function. You can either use twodigit years by applying a cutoff rule or you can force all years to be specified as four digits.
What does Set Date Cutoff do?
Date Cutoff tells Suprtool what century to use when Suprtool generates a constant date value from the $date function.
Before version 4.0, Suprtool would assume 19 for the century for any user-specified
$date with a two-digit year. For example:
>item date-field,date,ccyymmdd
>if date-field <= $date(40/12/26)
Previously the $date function would convert the user specified $date to 1940/12/26 in order for it to be compared to the date-field format of CCYYMMDD. Now with
Set Date Cutoff xx, Suprtool assumes 20 for the century if the two-digit year specified in the $date function is less than the value of Set Date Cutoff. For example:
>set date cutoff 50
>item date-field,date,ccyymmdd
>if date-field <= $date(40/12/26)
Suprtool in this case assumes the full $date to be 2040/12/26, because the 40 in $date is less than the 50 in Set Date Cutoff.
The default value of Set Date Cutoff is 10.
Stddate and Set Date Cutoff
When $Stddate has to convert from a date with only a two-digit year, the conversion to the four-digit year will use the value of Set Date Cutoff when converting the date.
For example,
>get sales-detail
>set date cutoff 15
>def new-ship-date,1,4,double
>item ship-date,date,mmddyy
>ext order-no / sales-amount
>ext new-ship-date = $stddate(ship-date)
>out salesinfo,link
>xeq
In this example, if any ship-date has a year of 14 or less, then the century applied to the new-ship-date field will be 20. Ship-dates with a year of 15 or more will have a century of 19 applied.
What does Set Date ForceCentury do?
Set Date ForceCentury On will not allow a yy date to be entered in the $date function, it will force the user to enter a full ccyy date.
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>set date forcecentury on
>item date-field,date,ccyymmdd
>if date-field >= $date(98/12/10)
Error: You must specify the century or Set Date ForceCentury off
The default value for Set Date ForceCentury is off.
What If I Have Two-Digit Years?
If you have dates with two-digit years, there are two main solutions to making your application ready for the Year 2000:
1. Convert all of your date data to use four-digit years and modify your programs to process four-digit years, or
2. Assume that certain dates are in the twentieth century and some in the twenty-first (this is usually called date windowing).
The first solution requires that you change all Suprtool Item commands for two-digit years to a four-digit year format. If you have not already done so, you may want to isolate all of these Item commands in a single file per input source (e.g., one file for every dataset in every database in your application or just one file for every database). You can nest use-files, making this approach even easier (e.g., having one database use-file that then includes each dataset use-file with a list of Item commands). You may also want to use Suprtool to assist you in changing your actual
data from two-digit years to four. See "Can Suprtool Convert Two-Digit Years to
Four Digits?" on page 50 for more details.
If you do not include the century in your dates (the second solution above), you will have the following problems:
1. Selecting dates in yymmdd format will not produce the expected results in relative operations (e.g., <, <=, >, or >=). You will need to change all of your If commands to use the $stddate function.
2. Sorting dates that include both 20th and 21st century dates, will not collate the way most users expect, whether with Suprtool, the COBOL sort verbs, or HPs sort tools. This is because Suprtool, and all HPsupplied tools, sort based on the numeric value of a date. To make this work correctly within Suprtool, you will need to use the $stddate function in an Extract command to generate a date with a four-digit year, then sort on this new date field with another Suprtool task.
What Is Wrong with Two-Digit Years?
Currently the date format of yymmdd collates (sorts) correctly if the date is not beyond December 31, 1999. Given the current date of 981210, numerically this is less than next year whose date value is 991210.
At the turn of the century dates in the yymmdd format (or yymm) will no longer sort correctly because the value of December 10, 2000 (001210) is less than 981210.
Consequently, if we have a date beyond 1999, stored in yymmdd format, a relative operation such as:
>if date-field >= $date(98/12/10) will not find the date of December 10, 2000. You will need to use the $stddate function to make this task work correctly.
>if $stddate(date-field) >= $date(98/12/10)
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
How Do $Today and $Date Work?
Suprtool's date functions ($date and $today) are a short-hand method of generating a numeric constant. So a date selection like:
>item invoice-date,date,YYMMDD
>if invoice-date < $today
is exactly the same as:
>if invoice-date < 980401 {on 1st April, 1998}
Suprtool does record selection on the numeric value of the field and not on the implied date value. If we move the calendar ahead to January 1, 2000 and do the same commands as above, the result would the same as if you had typed:
>if invoice-date < 000101 {on 1st January, 2000}
If you have some invoice dates from the previous century (e.g., 990101 for
December 1st, 1999), they will not be selected.
Will Suprtool Generate an Error for Two-Digit Year
Dates?
Sometimes.
Because dates beyond 1999 will not collate properly for the YYMMDD and YYMM formats, starting in version 4.0.11 the If command produces an error if the year specified in a $date or $today function is greater than 1999 and the date format is
YYMMDD or YYMM, and you are performing a relative operation (e.g., <, <=, >, or >=).
>item enddate, date, yymmdd
>if enddate >= $date(*+4/*/*) {21st. century date}
^
Error: Cannot use a date beyond 1999 for this format
Suprtool returns this error by default, but you can override it with the following set command:
>set date ifyy2000error off
This tells Suprtool to allow the previously described relative operations and suppress the error message. While you can override the error checking, the behavior of $today and $date is not changed.
How Do I Use $Today and $Date with yymmdd
Dates?
If you need to have Suprtool select dates in YYMMDD format with $Today or
$Date, you need to use one of the following solutions:
1. Change the date storage format to include the century in all datasets and data files, so you can use the following item command:
>item invoice-date,date,CCYYMMDD
2. Use the $stddate function that adds the century component to dates in a ccyymmdd format in a J2 container.
Also see "Case 1: Converting a J2 Date from yymmdd to ccyymmdd" on page 50
and "Case 2: X6 yymmdd Data to X8 ccyymmdd" on page 52 for more specific
details on converting two-digit-year date formats into four-digit-year date formats.
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aammdd Date Format
The aammdd date format was developed by James Overman of HP for use in the
MM3000 product. This format is only available for the X6 data-type.
The aammdd format is similar to yymmdd, but the year portion of the date use a combination of numbers and letters of the alphabet to represent years beyond 1999.
By substituting a letter of the alphabet in the first position of the year, we can extend a six-digit date and also ensure that the dates collate correctly. For example,
YY of AAMMDD
A0 - A9
B0 - B9
C0 - C9
CCYY
2000 - 2009
2010 - 2019
2020 - 2029
Because letters are greater than numbers in the collating sequence we can ensure that aammdd dates beyond 1999 will order correctly.
Suprtool also supports other date formats with this two-digit year representation.
These formats are aamm, mmddaa and ddmmaa.
Invalid Dates
The If command has a $invalid function to find all invalid dates for a particular field.
An invalid date is any number of a particular date format whose date equivalent cannot be found on the calendar. For example, a date with a month of 99 will be considered invalid.
>base store.demo
Database password [;]?
>get d-sales
>item deliv-date,date,ccyymmdd
>if $invalid(deliv-date)
>out baddates,link
>xeq
Can Suprtool Convert Two-Digit Years to Four
Digits?
Suprtool is capable of converting dates from one format to another using a variety of
Suprtool features. We will show how Suprtool can convert common dates without the century to those that have the century included. While Suprtool can convert your data, it is up to you to change your programs. Adager, a third-party program for changing Image database structures, has the ability to change date fields. Suprtool can convert data in Image databases, flat files, self-describing files and KSAM files.
Case 1: Converting a J2 Date from yymmdd to ccyymmdd
The $stddate function can convert six-digit date formats to ccyymmdd. But what if all the dates are not actually dates, but some dates are filled with 9s as a flag to an application?
Consider this dataset with two date fields, J2 items and in the date format yymmdd.
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Database: STORE.DB.GREEN
D-SALES Detail Set 5
Entry: Offset
CUST-ACCOUNT Z8 1 (!M-CUSTOMER)
DELIV-DATE J2 9
PRODUCT-NO Z8 13 (M-PRODUCT)
PRODUCT_PRICE J2 21
PURCH_DATE J2 25
SALES-QTY J1 29
SALES-TAX J2 31
SALES_TOTAL J2 35
Capacity: 602 (14) Entries: 10 Highwater: 10 Bytes: 38
First, we need to know and understand our data. Are there any invalid dates? If so, does the value have some other logical meaning?
>get d-sales
>item deliv-date,date,yymmdd
>item purch_date,date,yymmdd
>if $invalid(deliv-date) or $invalid(purch_date)
>list
>xeq
>GET D-SALES (9) >OUT $NULL (0)
CUST-ACCOUNT = 10010 DELIV-DATE = 999999
PRODUCT-NO = 50513001 PRODUCT_PRICE = 19220
PURCH_DATE = 999999 SALES-QTY = 2
SALES-TAX = 2691 SALES_TOTAL = 21910
>GET D-SALES (10) >OUT $NULL (1)
CUST-ACCOUNT = 10010 DELIV-DATE = 125213
PRODUCT-NO = 50513001 PRODUCT_PRICE = 19220
PURCH_DATE = 1 SALES-QTY = 2691
SALES-TAX = 21910 SALES_TOTAL = 21910
IN=10, OUT=2. CPU-Sec=1. Wall-Sec=1.
In this example, we see two records that do not contain proper dates. The first record contains all 9s, which is probably used as some sort of flag. We may need to add 99 in front of these dates.
But the second record is obviously wrong. We can use Dbedit to correct this before converting the other dates. We need to know our data to properly convert to a new date format.
Once all the incorrect dates are fixed, we can start converting. We can add a prefix of
19 or 20 to all the appropriate dates by using the following Extract statement. Please note that we are updating this directly. In case we need to redo this task, we only convert those dates that have not yet been converted. In this example we set the cutoff year to 30 so any dates before 30 will have 20 as the century and the others will have 19.
>get d-sales
>set date cutoff 30
>item purch_date,date,yymmdd
>item deliv-date,date,yymmdd
>if not $invalid(purch_date) and not $invalid(deliv-date)
>update
>ext purch_date = $stddate(purch_date)
>ext deliv-date = $stddate(deliv-date)
>xeq
We have now converted all the J2 yymmdd dates to a ccyymmdd format and added the correct century to the date.
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Case 2: X6 yymmdd Data to X8 ccyymmdd
The following Suprtool task shows how you can generate a new file to put into a new database with dates in a different format.
Consider the deliv-date and purch_date fields of the D-Sales dataset:
Database: STORE.DBOLD.ACCOUNT
D-SALES Detail Set 5
Entry: Offset
CUST-ACCOUNT Z8 1 (!M-CUSTOMER)
DELIV-DATE X6 9
PRODUCT-NO Z8 15 (M-PRODUCT)
PRODUCT_PRICE J2 23
PURCH_DATE X6 27
SALES-QTY J1 33
SALES-TAX J2 35
SALES_TOTAL J2 39
Capacity: 611 (13) Entries: 15 Highwater: 15 Bytes: 42
You want to convert to a date format with room for a cc at the beginning of the deliv-date and purch_date:
Database: STORE.DB.ACCOUNT
D-SALES Detail Set 5
Entry: Offset
CUST-ACCOUNT Z8 1 (!M-CUSTOMER)
DELIV-DATE X8 9
PRODUCT-NO Z8 17 (M-PRODUCT)
PRODUCT_PRICE J2 25
PURCH_DATE X8 29
SALES-QTY J1 37
SALES-TAX J2 39
SALES_TOTAL J2 43
Capacity: 608 (16) Entries: 0 Highwater: 0 Bytes: 46
In order to convert these dates you need to be able to put either a 19 or 20 in front of the yymmdd date, depending on the value of the year. Before you can do either of these you must confirm, once again, that you have no invalid dates.
>base store.dbold
>get d-sales
>item deliv-date,date,yymmdd
>item purch_date,date,yymmdd
>if $invalid(deliv-date) or $invalid(purch_date)
>list
>xeq
Once you have confirmed that there are no invalid dates you can start converting the dates that you have. Because there are two date fields in this dataset you must be careful to add the appropriate century for the proper field. For this example, assume that if a year is less than 1950 then the century should be 20.
You can easily convert each date by processing each field separately by using an intermediate self-describing file:
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
>base store.dbold,1
Database password [;]?
>get d-sales
>set squeeze off
>item deliv-date,date,yymmdd
>if deliv-date >= $date(1950/01/01)
>out sales01,link
>ext cust-account
>ext "19"
>ext deliv-date / sales_total
>xeq
IN=15, OUT=14. CPU-Sec=1. Wall-Sec=5.
Now insert 20 to the century for the appropriate records:
>base store.dbold
>get d-sales
>if deliv-date < $date(1950/01/01)
>ext cust-account
>ext "20"
>ext deliv-date / sales_total
>out sales01,link,append
>xeq
Now you can convert the other field from the flat file, (sales01) and add a century to the purch_date field:
>reset
>base {close the open database}
>in sales01
>item purch_date,date,yymmdd
>if purch_date >= $date(1950/01/01)
>set squeeze off
>out sales02,link
>ext cust-account / product_price
>ext "19"
>ext purch_date / sales_total
>xeq
IN=15, OUT=15. CPU-Sec=1. Wall-Sec=1.
Because you extracted all 15 records you know you do not have any records with the purch_date field that need to be updated with a "20".
Now you can insert the records into the new database:
>base store.db
>in sales02
>put d-sales
>xeq
Now you have converted two dates from an X6 format to an X8 format.
Case 3: Different Date Formats X6 MMDDYY Data to X6 YYMMDD
The following Suprtool task shows you how to convert a date in a self-describing file from mmddyy to yymmdd format.
Consider the following self-describing file with the deliv-date and purch_date fields:
Suprtool Issues and Solutions
• 53
File: SALES04.DATA.ACCOUNT (SD Version B.00.00)
Entry: Offset
CUST-ACCOUNT Z8 1
DELIV-DATE X6 9 <<MMDDYY>>
PRODUCT-NO Z8 15
PRODUCT_PRICE I2 23
PURCH_DATE X6 27 <<MMDDYY>>
SALES-QTY I1 33
SALES-TAX I2 35
SALES_TOTAL I2 39
Limit: 115 EOF: 15 Entry Length: 42 Blocking: 97
You want to convert these two dates to a data format of yymmdd before adding a century in front of the year. This can be easily accomplished by defining each sub part of the date and extracting those parts in the new order.
>in sales04
>def deliv-date-mm,deliv-date[1],2
>def deliv-date-dd,deliv-date[3],2
>def deliv-date-yy,deliv-date[5],2
>def purch_date-mm,purch_date[1],2
>def purch_date-dd,purch_date[3],2
>def purch_date-yy,purch_date[5],2
>ext cust-account
>ext deliv-date-yy
>ext deliv-date-mm
>ext deliv-date-dd
>ext product-no / product_price
>ext purch_date-yy
>ext purch_date-mm
>ext purch_date-dd
>ext sales-qty / sales_total
>out sales05,link
>xeq
You now have a file with the dates in yymmdd order, but the self-describing information shows three separate fields.
File: SALES05.DATE.ACCOUNT (SD Version B.00.00)
Entry: Offset
CUST-ACCOUNT Z8 1
DELIV-DATE-YY X2 9
DELIV-DATE-MM X2 11
DELIV-DATE-DD X2 13
PRODUCT-NO Z8 15
PRODUCT_PRICE I2 23
PURCH_DATE-YY X2 27
PURCH_DATE-MM X2 29
PURCH_DATE-DD X2 31
SALES-QTY I1 33
SALES-TAX I2 35
SALES_TOTAL I2 39
Limit: 115 EOF: 15 Entry Length: 42 Blocking: 97
You can convert these several fields to one field with another extract task:
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>in sales05
>def deliv-date,9,6,byte
>def purch_date,27,6,byte
>item deliv-date,date,yymmdd
>item purch_date,date,yymmdd
>ext cust-account
>ext deliv-date
>ext product-no
>ext product_price
>ext purch_date
>ext sales-qty / sales_total
>out sales06,link
>xeq
IN=15, OUT=15. CPU-Sec=1. Wall-Sec=1.
You now end up with a file that looks like this:
File: SALES06.DATA.ACCOUNT (SD Version B.00.00)
Entry: Offset
CUST-ACCOUNT Z8 1
DELIV-DATE X6 9 <<YYMMDD>>
PRODUCT-NO Z8 15
PRODUCT_PRICE I2 23
PURCH_DATE X6 27 <<YYMMDD>>
SALES-QTY I1 33
SALES-TAX I2 35
SALES_TOTAL I2 39
Limit: 115 EOF: 15 Entry Length: 42 Blocking: 97
You then add the century to these fields as described above.
Year 2000 Testing
Testing software to see if it works in the year 2000 and beyond is difficult. Currently there are three software tools that change the software date for specific sessions or applications, making it easier to test software for year 2000 compliance. The four tools are:
1. Hourglass from Allegro Consultants, Inc.
2. Time Machine from SolutionSoft Systems, Inc.
3. Setdate from the HP Jazz machine on the Web
All versions of Suprtool work with Hourglass, but versions previous to 4.0.13 did not work with Time Machine, Setdate, or TimeWarp. This version of Suprtool now works with all these tools. Note that this change only applies to non-expiring versions of Suprtool. Expiring versions of Suprtool (such as trials, pre-releases, and products obtained through VARs) do not work with Time Machine or Setdate.
Performance Issues
HP-UX sites use Suprtool because it provides access to their data many times faster than they are used to. Suprtool also enables them to perform time-consuming DP functions with only a few simple commands. The typical Suprtool task consists of extracting some data for a report, then feeding the Suprtool output file into the final report program. For example, you might fill a data file with the subset of data needed, then report that file with Microfocus COBOL.
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Sort Performance
Suprtool/UX uses its own set of sorting routines. These routines are generally faster than the sorting algorithms provided with software tools and SQL databases.
If you have the right data, Suprtool/UX can sort much faster than other HP-UX tools.
Because sort performance varies a lot from application to application, we recommend that you test Suprtool/UX in your own environment.
You can improve the performance of sort operations by moving the sort workspace to a different physical disk drive than the input file uses.
You can move the sort scratch space by setting the TMPDIR environment variable to a directory that resides on another physical disk drive, provided you have read and write access to that directory. export TMPDIR="/var/tmp/sortscratch"
Oracle Performance
Suprtool/UX provides you with easy ways to let either Oracle or Suprtool do most of the work. Whether it is best to use Oracle or Suprtool depends on your specific machine, database, and application. You can use the Select command to force Oracle to do much of the processing or you can use Suprtool to do the work. In our testing,
Suprtool consistently sorts two to four times faster than Oracle. Your performance improvements may be different from ours, so we recommend that you take some common tasks and try them with both tools. Here is an example of sorting with
Oracle and then with Suprtool:
Oracle sorts data
>select * from emp order by ename
Suprtool sorts data:
>select * from emp
>sort ename
For more information on Oracle performance, we recommend the book Oracle
Performance Tuning by Peter Corrigan and Mark Gurry (published by O'Reilly and
Associates).
Analyzing Performance Data
It is better to test Suprtool with your own database and your own application needs, rather than trust a "generic" performance test. The ideal test is an actual production report whose bad performance is causing you a problem. If you obtain improvements by using Suprtool, you know that you can achieve better speed in practice as well as in tests.
Use Suprtool as a front end to your problem report, producing a small extract file that contains just the fields and records needed for your final program. Once you get that working, consider linking in data from other files or datasets using Suprlink. For comparison purposes, run the Suprtool test at the same time as you would normally run the original program. Comparing a standalone midnight run against a mid-day run does not give valid results, nor does comparing two runs in succession (the second run benefits on HP-UX because the files are already in memory at that time).
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Performance Summary
Suprtool is a performance tool. Not because every Suprtool command is always fast, but because performance is one of our first concerns when adding new features to
Suprtool. We always look for the fastest way to do any task, even if that means it can't be quite as flexible as other software tools.
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Suprtool Commands
General Notes
Do not enter the > sign when typing commands.
When you run Suprtool, it prompts for commands with a ">" character and reads command lines from the standard input device. Suprtool commands contain a command name which may include one or more optional parameters that are each separated by commas.
In this chapter, we describe the Suprtool commands in alphabetic order. Each command name is followed by its minimal abbreviation in brackets. For example:
[D] for Define and [DU] for Duplicate.
Most Suprtool commands work within the context of the input file. In general, the
Base, Chain, Get, Open, Select and Input commands must be entered before other commands. Once the input source has been specified, commands can be entered in any order.
Abbreviating
You may shorten the command name to any substring that uniquely defines the command. For example, Form can be abbreviated as FO or F, since there are no other commands that start with "F". Duplicate, however, can be abbreviated only to
DU, since there is also a Define command in Suprtool.
>i sdfile {Input command}
>l {List command}
>x {Xeq command}
Uppercase or Lowercase
You can enter the letters in either uppercase or lowercase because Suprtool upshifts everything in the command line except literal strings within quotes (e.g., "abc") and disc file names. These two commands are identical:
>EXTRACT QTY
>extract qty
Multiple Commands per Line
You can enter several commands on a single line, if you separate them with semicolons. An entire "task" can be placed on one input line.
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The maximum command that may be specified in the Info= parameter of the Run command is 80 characters.
You may also use MPE's
:COMMENT command to enter comment lines.
>in sdfile;out new;xeq
>in sdfile;if cust-status<>10,20,30;list;x
Caution: Suprtool cannot distinguish between several commands on one line and several commands entered on several lines. This is not a problem when using
Suprtool in batch, as Suprtool stops executing when an error occurs. But when using
Suprtool interactively, specifying multiple commands separated by a semicolon,
Suprtool keeps on parsing the rest of the line after it finds an error. For example, if you misspell the "fldname" when you type the following,
>get dsetname; if fldname="value";delete;out filename;xeq
Suprtool sends you an error message with the typo, but continues with the rest of the command line. This has the effect of deleting all the entries in the dataset. It is risky to type Xeq on the same command line as any other command unless:
1. You are not concerned with the consequences if you make a mistake
(e.g., any "extract" task should be safe).
2. You don't make any mistakes.
The usual reason for putting all the commands on one line, including the Xeq, is to permit repetition of the task by using the Before command. It is not necessary to type everything on one line because with the Listredo command, Suprtool allows you to pick and choose any of your last 1000 commands.
Continuation
The maximum physical command line is 256 characters. You may enter commands on multiple input lines by putting an "&" continuation character at the end of the line. The maximum total command length is 256 characters. The separating comma in commands is not optional. Should your If command exceed 256 characters, use the Table command, or $read.
>in sdfile
>if status="20" and & {continue the If command}
state="AZ","CA","OR" {select several states}
>output outfile
Comments on Command Lines
Comments may appear at the end of any command line, as long as they are surrounded by curly braces. Many of the examples in this manual show comments at the end of command lines. You can enter a comment as the only item in a Suprtool command line. When you enter continued command lines, the comment can appear before or after the continuation character:
>{The following task extracts all customer records for}
>{ the different customers we are interested in.}
>in customer {input self-describing file}
>if status = "10" or & {prepaid status}
status = "20" or & {current status}
status = "30" {arrears status}
>output outfile {output to a disc file}
>exit {execute the task and exit}
HP-UX Commands
If Suprtool doesn't recognize the command you have entered, it tries to interpret it as an operating system command. Suprtool also interprets any command line beginning with an exclamation mark (!) or a colon (:) as an O/S command. For example:
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>!# sort custfile by custnum {comment}
>input custfile
>key 1,10 {no '!' on the next command}
>ls sort* {check for file name}
>out sortcust
>exit
Calculator
Any command line beginning with an equal sign (=) is treated as a calculator expression. This feature can be used to compute blocking factors and do other calculations without the need of an electronic calculator. For help, type =?.
Control-Y Interrupt
You can interrupt a Suprtool task with the Control-Y key (hold down Control while striking Y). Suprtool responds by telling you how much work it has done
(IN=,OUT=,etc.) and asks if you wish to stop. Hit the Return key to continue or type
YES to stop the task. Even though you abort the task, your output file is saved
(although it may be empty if you stop before the sort phase is over).
Many HP-UX sites use Control-C as the interrupt key instead of Control-Y. Use the
HP-UX 'stty' command to display your 'intr' setting.
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Add Command [Add]
Specify an SQL table to which you wish to Add records.
Add tablename
Use the Add command to "insert" records into an Oracle table. You must specify the
Oracle tablename and you must have opened the Oracle database to which you wish to add records.
The tablename specified must be a valid table and not a view. The fields from the input source, or the extracted names must be the same as the column names in the table to which you wish to add records.
You do not have to specify all columns in the table; unreferenced columns will be given default values depending on their data-type.
You cannot currently add records from another SQL table. However, you can extract the records you want into a file and then add from that file.
Examples
The first example shows a typical Add task. A self-describing file's records are added to the table called customer. This assumes that the self-describing file has the same structure and that the field names are the same as the column names.
>open oracle scott tiger {open SQL database}
>in custrecs {input file you wish to add}
>add customer {specify the Oracle table}
>exit {execute the task}
Our next example shows how to add by redefining the fields from a self-describing file into a table. The names are redefined so that the field names being extracted will match those in the table of the SQL database.
>open oracle scott tiger {open SQL database}
>in custrecs {input file you wish to add}
>def cust_name,custname {redefine the items to match}
>def cust_addr,address {the names in the table}
>extract cust_name {extract data under the column name}
>extract cust_addr
>add customer {specify the Oracle table}
>exit {execute the task}
Our final example shows input from a flat file.
>open oracle scott tiger {open SQL database}
>in salehist {input file you wish to add}
>def cust_number,1,6,byte {redefine the items to match}
>def item_no,7,10,byte {the names in the table}
>def sales,18,4,double
>extract cust_number {extract data under the column name}
>extract item_no
>extract sales
>add customer {specify the Oracle table}
>exit {execute the task}
Suprtool cannot currently support integers larger than two words.
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Base Command [BA]
Opens a specified Eloquence database. Once you have it open, you can extract data from datasets, delete entries, load new entries into datasets, and use the schema to define fields for disc files (Input file = set).
To close the current database, use Base without parameters.
BASE basename [,mode [,password] ]
(Default: mode=1, password=Creator)
Basename is the name of your database. Mode is the DBOPEN mode that you want
(i.e., mode-1 for shared updates, mode-5 for shared read-only), and password is the
DBOPEN database password. When the password is included in the Base command, it is always upshifted. Use the ? option to specify lowercase passwords.
Suprtool opens the Base, which remains open until you do another Base command, a
Reset Base, or a Reset All, even if you do several extracts from the database.
Examples
The first example shows a typical Suprtool task. A dataset in the Store database is read and a subset of the entries are sorted into a disc file:
>base store,5,READER {open for read access only}
>get d-sales {select an input dataset}
>if sales-total>10000 {choose a subset of all entries}
>sort cust-account {sort by account number}
>output salesout {output has same structure}
>exit { as the d-sales dataset}
Our next example opens the database with the Creator password (which is the default). No output file is produced; instead, we produce a formatted listing of the input dataset:
>base store {use the Creator password}
>form sets {you cannot remember the names}
>get d-inventory { of the datasets in Store}
>list {print the dataset fields formatted.}
>exit { no output file is created}
In session mode, this command would prompt for the database password. If none is entered, or Suprtool is not running interactively, the Creator password is used by default (;). Because the open mode was not specified, the database is opened in mode-1.
Database Passwords in Batch
In batch mode, it is necessary to specify a database password without the password being echoed on the job stream listing. A special database password is provided to allow for this. When a question mark "?" is used as the database password, Suprtool prompts for the password on the next physical input line without echoing. This occurs in batch mode or in session mode. For example:
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>base store,5,? {Suprtool prompts for the password.}
Password > {Password is on this line, but it won't}
>get d-inventory {show on job stream listing or terminal.}
>exit
Open Modes
Base does not allow mode-7 for exclusive read access, but it does allow mode-4 for exclusive update while others read. Mode-4 disallows changes while you are extracting from the database. Mode-3 for fully exclusive access is tolerated, but causes Suprtool to use slow DBGETs to extract from datasets. Mode-3 should only be used when you need to do a Delete or Put command with Set Defer On.
Suprtool allows you to open a second database in the Put command when you are copying from one database to another.
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Before Command [B]
Repeat any combination of the previous 1000 command lines, with or without editing.
[ string ]
[ ALL | @ ]
BEFORE [ start [ / stop ] ]
[ string ]
[ ALL | @ ]
(Default: redo previous line)
(BQ=redo without change)
The Before command allows you to modify the commands before it executes them.
If you don't need to change them, use BQ or Do.
The Before command uses Qedit-style Control characters for modifying the commands. The default mode is to replace characters. To delete use Control-D, and to insert use Control-B. If you prefer HP-style modify (D, R, I, and U), use the Redo command instead of Before.
Examples
>ll *.fd {".sd" is not spelled right}
*.fd not found
>Before {redo most recent command} ll *.fd {last command is printed}
s {you enter changes to it} ll *.sd {the edited command is shown}
{you press Return}
>listredo -10/
>before 5 {redo 5th command in stack}
>bef 8/10 {redo 8th through 10th}
>b ls {redo last ls command}
>b ls * {redo "ls *" command}
>b @* {redo last containing "*"}
>before -2 {redo command before previous}
>before -5/-2 {redo by relative lines}
Modify Operators
If you wish to change any characters within the line, the modify operators are the regular Control Codes used in Qedit:
Characters Action
Any printing characters
Control-D plus spaces
Control-B
Control-A replace the ones above. (This assumes your
EOF key has been altered from the HP-UX default.) deletes columns above. puts you into "insert before" mode. starts appending characters at the end of line.
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Control-A, Control-D, plus spaces
Control-T
Control-G
Control-O deletes from the end. ends Insert Mode, allowing movement to a new column. recovers the original line. specifies "overwrite" mode (needed for spaces).
Persistent Redo
Redo commands can be saved in a permanent file and can therefore be used from another session. You can use the Set redo command to specify a filename to save
your redo commands. Please see "Redo" on page 166 for details.
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Chain Command [C]
Selects an Eloquence dataset and a search path as the input source for the next extract. For detail datasets, the Chain command does a DBFIND on the specified search path and uses DBGET mode-5 to read the records. For master datasets, the
Chain command uses DBGET mode-7. You must have read access to all fields in the dataset entry. Only one Chain, Get, or Input command is allowed per extract task.
CHAIN setname,search-field=value [,...]
CHAIN setname,search-field=table-name
When using Chain, the size of the output file defaults to the size of the Chain dataset.
If the dataset is large and the selected subset is small, you should use the Numrecs command to reduce the size of the output file.
Selection by Individual Values
Suppose you want to find all the sales records for customer account "1234".
Assuming that cust-account is a search field in the d-sales dataset, you would use this:
>base store,5,READER {open for read access only}
>chain d-sales,cust-account="1234" {read the sales records for customer 1234}
>out out1
>xeq
If you want to select sales records for more than one customer, you would use:
>chain d-sales,cust-account="12345","67890","39201"
>out out2
>xeq
Values with Decimal Places
You can specify values with decimal places for search fields with implied decimal places. For example,
>item unit-cost,decimal,2 {two implied decimal points}
>chain d-inventory,unit-cost=10,10.5,10.75
>out out3 {select records for 1000, 1050, and 1075}
>xeq
Selection with a Table
You can specify the records to read using a table. The Table command may appear before or after the Chain command. Use this option when you have a file of key values to search for:
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>{select the sales records that match the values in custfile}
>chain d-sales,cust-account=sales-table
>table sales-table,cust-account,file,custfile
>out out4
>xeq
Combining Chain with If
The Chain command selects an input dataset and a set of key values to search for. To specify additional selection criteria, use the Chain command to specify the key values and the If command for the additional selection criteria:
>{select records for customer 1234 where the sales-qty is }
>{ greater than 100}
>chain d-sales,cust-account="1234"
>if sales-qty > 100
>out out5
>xeq
Notes
The Chain command is intended to replace a Get and If combination where the primary selection is by key value. In many cases, it is still faster to use the Get command to read the entire dataset than it is to use the Chain command to use search-paths. Use Set Stat On to compare the performance of the Chain and Get commands.
The dataset search field cannot be a R-type item.
The Chain command always reads the chain values in sorted order by ascending search-value. You do not need to specify a Sort command to have the output file sorted by the search field.
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Define Command [D]
Defines fields that can be used in the Duplicate, Extract, If, Item, Sort, Table, and
Total commands. With Define, you can do selection on ordinary data files using the same kind of readable "expression" that you use with databases. You can also access data fields that are not actually structured as defined in the database (e.g., implicit subfields within an IMAGE field).
DEFINE field, definition
field is an identifier up to 32 characters long, must begin with a letter, and can consist of letters A through Z, digits 0 through 9, or the following symbols:
+ - * / ? # % & @ _ $ '
In the case where the field name is written to a self-describing file, only the first 16 characters are used.
definition can be in two different forms: absolute or relative.
Absolute Definitions
DEFINE field, byteposition, sublen [,type]
[,subcount]
(Default: type=BYTE, subcount=1)
The byteposition is a positive integer giving the byte index where the field starts. The first byte is always number 1, not 0. The sublen is the number of bytes in the field.
When the subcount is 1 (default), the sublen is the total number of bytes in the field.
When you specify a subcount, the sublen is the byte-length of each subfield.
See Data-Types below for the definition of type.
>input uxfile,r 40, lf {input from a disc file}
>def qty,14,4,double {double integer (PIC S9(9) COMP)}
>def name,5,6 {character string of 6 bytes}
>sort name {sort using the field "name"}
>total qty {total all the values of the field "QTY"}
>exit
Relative Definitions
[,subcount]
DEFINE field,
fieldname [ (subscript) ] [ [offset] ]
[,sublen] [,type] [,subcount]
(Default: sublen/type=same as fieldname)
The fieldname is a field from an Eloquence dataset specified in Get or Chain, or a column from a table specified in Select, or a field from a self-describing file, or another Defined field. Relative definitions are similar to COBOL's Redefine verb.
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The sublen and type are optional. They default to the total byte length and type of the
fieldname. The (subscript) parameter is an optional sub-item index for arrays such as
Eloquence compound items like 5J2 or 4X20. The first sub-item is number 1, and if no subscript is provided, Suprtool uses the first sub-item. The [offset] parameter is optional and specifies a byte offset from the position that would otherwise be used.
This allows you to define fields relative to other fields. The [offset] starts at 1 and not at 0 (i.e., FIELD[1] is the first byte of the field).
To define a field that corresponds to the second index of the address array of the customer file, you would use:
>in customer {self-describing file}
>define city,address(2)
>if city="Vancouver"
>list
>xeq
Data-Types
Here are the valid types:
Type Description
PACKED packed-decimal
PACKED* packed-decimal, last nibble unused
DISPLAY zoned-decimal numeric field
CHARACTER for Native Language Support
The Define command also accepts Fpoint as the data-type for IEEE numbers.
The following table shows the Suprtool definitions for the IMAGE data-types:
IMAGE Type
I1
I2
Number of Bytes COBOL
Declaration
2
4
S9(4) COMP
S9(9) COMP
SUPRTOOL
Definition
>define a,1,2,integer
>define a,1,4,double
J1
J2
2
4
S9(4) COMP
S9(9) COMP
>define a,1,2,integer
>define a,1,4,double
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Pn n/2 S9(n-1) COMP-3
>define a,1,n/2,packed
K1 2 >define
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K2 4 >define
E2 4 >define
E4 8 >define
Data-type Display may have a trailing overpunch sign.
Packed-Decimal Fields
When defining packed-decimal fields, you must convert the number of decimal digits into a byte count. The last digit of a decimal field is always used for the sign.
There are two data-types for decimal fields: PACKED for those that end on a byte boundary and PACKED* for those that end in the middle of a byte. Here are some example definitions of packed-decimal fields:
Suprtool Definition
>define m,1,2,packed
>define n,1,2,packed*
>define p,1,6,packed
Description
s9(3) COMP-3, P4 in IMAGE, 2 bytes, 4 nibbles, last is sign digit s9(2) COMP-3, P4 in IMAGE, 2 bytes, 4 nibbles, last digit is unused s9(11) COMP-3, P12 in IMAGE, 6 bytes, 3 words, 11 digits
Data-Type Warning
The Define command accepts field definitions of any combination of byte-length and data-type. However, many combinations have limited usefulness in Suprtool. In these cases, Suprtool prints a warning. For example:
>def field,1,1,integer
Warning: Length of 1 is of limited use for the data-type INTEGER
Examples
The following examples show the various data-types and combinations that are available with the Define command:
>define a,11,4,double {J2 or I2, S9(9) COMP}
>define b,21,2,int {J1 or I1, S9(4) COMP}
>define e,21,8 {character string}
>define f,address(5) {fifth occurrence of address}
>define g,address(5)[3],4 {relative offset}
>define h,address(5)[4],2,byte {middle of the address}
>define i,x[6],4 {starts at sixth byte of X}
>define j,invoice,6,byte {redefine field as Byte}
Absolute Example
The following example shows the most basic use of the Define command to create a new field definition at an absolute location in the input record.
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{"amt" is an integer that starts at the 11th byte of file}
>def amt,11,2,int
>if amt > 1000 {"amt" is now a field we can select on}
>output outfile
Absolute Example with Subcount
IMAGE and Suprtool allow fields to be repeated. In the next example, we define an amount field that repeats twelve times (e.g., once for each month of the year). We use a subscript when we want to refer to a specific month.
>def amt,11,2,int,12 {"amt" is an integer that repeats 12 times}
>if amt(5) > 1000 {we select on the 5th subfield}
>output outfile
Relative Examples
Use the simplest form of relative definitions to rename existing fields.
>def quantity,qty {"quantity" is a more readable name}
>if quantity = "100 " {selection on the new field}
The Define command copies the byteposition, sublength, and type to the new field, but it does not copy the subcount. Define assumes that you want the first subfield:
>def amount,amt {amt is 12J2}
>if amount > 1000 {amount is 1J2 and is the same as amt(1)}
Relative Example with Subcount
Because Suprtool defaults the subcount to one, you might want to specify an explicit subcount when giving a new name to an existing field.
>def amount,amt,,,12 {amt is 12J2; same length and type}
>if amount(5) > 1000 {amount is 12J2; we are selecting for May}
Relative Example with Subscript
Use subscripts to define a new field that corresponds to a specific subfield.
>def may,amt(5) {amt is 12J2}
>if may > 1000 {may is the fifth subfield}
Relative Example with Offset
Many applications define subfields within a larger character field. A common example is a part-number where the first four digits are the warehouse location, the second four digits are the bin number, and the last four digits are a serially assigned number. Use the offset parameter to define new fields that are relative to the start of the part number. The file INVOICES is a self-describing file.
>in invoices {part is 12 bytes}
>def warehouse,part,4 {warehouse starts at part}
>def bin,part[5],4 {bin is second four bytes}
>def release,part[9],4 {release is the last four bytes}
>if bin = "100" {use any field for selection}
Note that redefining the digits of a larger numeric field only works when the field is a character field (type X, U, or A).
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
The Extract command may be used for data conversion. See
the Data Conversion section
of the Extract command for details.
Relative Example Combining Subscripts and Offsets
If we have ten part numbers combined into one field (e.g., 10X12) we can still define a single field that corresponds to the bin number of one of the parts.
>in invoices {allparts is 10X12}
>def bin3,allparts(3)[5],4 {we are checking starting at the fifth byte …}
>if bin3 = "100" {… of the third part}
Notes
The purpose of the Define command is to tell Suprtool to look at a portion of the input record in a certain way. For example, if the record contains ASCII digits in the first ten bytes, Define could be used to assign a field definition to the first six bytes.
In this case, the field must be defined as data-type Byte, Char or Display.
The Define command cannot be used to convert data from one format to another.
Using the same example, the Define command could not be used to treat the first six digits of the ten digit ASCII field as Integer, Packed, Real, or any other numeric data format. If the input record contains ASCII digits, Define cannot change them to another data-type.
It may be helpful to think of the Suprtool Define command as similar to a COBOL
REDEFINES clause, or a FORTRAN EQUIVALENCE statement.
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Delete Command [DEL]
Deletes all entries selected from the input Eloquence dataset.
DELETE
DELETE
Delete has no parameters, and can be entered only after the source of input records has been specified using Get or Chain. Delete causes Suprtool to "delete" the input records after they have been read, either all of the input records, or a subset defined by the If command. Delete is not supported for SQL or disc files, only for Eloquence datasets.
Examples
>:comment Delete and sort old transactions, write to file.
>base store
>get d-sales {dataset to delete from}
>if purch-date<980101 {select which records to delete}
>delete {ask for deletion}
>sort cust-account {sort by account and sort}
>sort purch-date { by date}
>output oldsales {output file with deleted and sorted records}
>exit
Losing Records
Delete can be combined with other operations, such as select, sort, write to output file, and even a Put to another dataset. Care must be used when combining operations, because such combinations cannot be restarted if the Suprtool "run" is aborted for any reason (including hitting Control-Y and answering "yes"). See
"Suprtool and " on page 37 for more details on using the Delete and Put commands
in combination.
Suprtool deletes records during the input phase. This means that records are deleted before they are sorted. All of the selected input records are deleted before the first output record is written when sorting the input. If you press Control-Y and answer
"yes" before a delete task has completed, there may be no way to recover your deleted records.
Warning Message
When deleting records from the input dataset, Suprtool asks for permission to delete all records if there is no If command to select the records to be deleted:
Delete all records from the D-SALES dataset [no]:
Respond Yes for the task to continue.
In batch mode, Suprtool assumes Yes and keep processing.
Note that if there is no If command, but there is some other command to limit the number of records deleted (e.g., the Numrecs command or a record-range on the Get command), Suprtool still asks the question, implying that all records in the dataset will be deleted. In these cases, only the records that are read, based on the limiting factor, will be deleted.
For interactive approval of each deletion, see the #Delete command of Dbedit.
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Notes
For IMAGE manual master datasets, a DBDELETE call fails if the entry to be deleted is a "chain-head" with related detail entries still linked to it. When this happens, Suprtool, by default, prints an error and stops processing the input data. If
Set Dumponerror On, the record is printed on $stdlist. If Set Ignore On has been entered, Suprtool continues processing and prints a count of "chain-heads" at the end.
Records that cannot be deleted are not included in the output file.
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Do Command [DO]
The Do command repeats (without changes) any of the previous 1000 commands.
[ ALL | @ ]
DO [ start [ / stop ] ]
[ string ]
[ ALL | @ ]
(Default: repeat the previous command)
Commands are numbered sequentially from 1 as entered and the last 1000 of them are retained. Use the Listredo command to display the previous commands. You can repeat a single command (do 5), a range of commands (do 5/10) or the most recent command whose name matches a string (do list). If you want to modify the commands before executing them, use Redo or Before.
Examples
>listredo {see the previous 20 commands}
>do {do previous command again}
>do 39 {do command line 39 again}
>do 5/8 {do command lines 5 to 8 again}
>do list {do most recent List command}
>do grep {do last starting with "grep"}
>do grep job * {do last "grep job *" command}
>do @job {do last containing "job"}
>do -2 {do command before previous one}
>do -7/-5 {do by relative line number}
>do 5/ {do command lines 5 to "last"}
Notes
The Do command can be abbreviated to ,., as in MPEX . You cannot use ";" to combine commands on the same line.
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Duplicate Command [DU]
By default, Suprtool copies all selected input records to the output file. The
Duplicate command determines what to do with duplicate output records. Duplicate records can be discarded, producing an output file without duplicates. Alternatively, you may be interested in seeing the duplicate records, so you can create an output file consisting solely of the duplicate records. When deciding whether an output record is a duplicate, Suprtool either compares the keys only or the entire output record.
DUPLICATE NONE | ONLY
RECORD [num]
[ COUNT ] [ TOTAL ... ]
DUPLICATE NONE | ONLY
RECORD | KEYS [num]
[ COUNT ] [ TOTAL ... ]
None
The None option removes duplicate records from the output file. Suprtool compares each output record with the previous output record. If they are not the same, the record is added to the output file. This option corresponds to the former Nodup and
Nodupkey options of the Output command.
>key 1,4
>duplicate none keys
Input Output
1111 10 1111 10
2222 25 2222 25
2222 35 3333 48
3333 48
Only
The Only option is the exact opposite of None. Only selects all output records that would not be written by the None option. When the Only option finds a record that duplicates a record already in the set, it writes that duplicate to the output file. Note that the first record is not written to the output file. Here are two examples:
>key 1,4
>duplicate only keys
Input Output Input Output
1111 10 2222 35 1111 10 2222 35
2222 25 2222 25 2222 42
2222 35 2222 35
3333 48 2222 42
Record
Suprtool has two methods for comparing output records: Record and Keys. The
Record option compares the entire output record. This option can be specified without a sort, but in that case the input file must already be sorted. Note that there
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• Suprtool Commands are two data fields in the records in the following example, so that a comparison of the entire record yields no duplicates.
>duplicate none record
Input Output
1111 10 1111 10
2222 25 2222 25
2222 35 2222 35
3333 48 3333 48
Keys
The Keys option compares only the sort keys to determine whether an output record is a duplicate. This option requires that at least one sort key be specified.
>sort agent {sort by agent}
>duplicate none keys
>output agents {create roster of agents}
The Keys Num option determines the level at which Suprtool compares sort keys.
This option controls which duplicate records get included in (or excluded from) the output file.
In the following example we sort by agent and by bill-date (in descending order), but only check for duplicates at the agent level.
>sort agent {sort by agent}
>sort bill-date,desc {sort by date}
>duplicate none keys 1 {only check for duplicate agents}
>output agents {create roster of agents}
Count
The Count option causes Suprtool to produce a new field in the output record with the number of occurrences of each key value. The count field is called st-count, and is an I2-type field. The Count option can only be used with Duplicate None Keys.
>key 1,4
>duplicate none keys count
Input Output
1111 10 1111 10 1
2222 25 2222 25 2 {two records for key value 2222}
2222 35 3333 48 1
3333 48
Total
The Total option allows up to 15 fields to be subtotaled for each duplicate key.
Separate the fields with spaces, not commas. The Total option can only be used with
Duplicate None Keys. A new field is created at the end of the output record for each total. Each field is called st-total-n:
>sort customer-no
>extract customer-no
>duplicate none keys total sales-qty sales-amt
The above commands will create a self-describing file with the field customer-no and the total by each customer of the sales-qty in the field st-total-1. Similarly the field st-total-2 will contain the total sales-amt by customer number.
The following data-types are chosen for each total based on the data-type of the field:
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
IEEE E4 all others P28
Please see the P28 Fields section on how to define these fields in Cobol and
PowerHouse programs.
Note that for byte fields, there can be only digits in the field. If there are other characters such as "+", "-", or ".", then Suprtool reports an error.
You can use the Link output option to easily see the fields that Suprtool creates. For repeated fields (e.g., 6I2), the first subfield is subtotaled if you don't provide a subscript. You can combine the Count and Total options, but the Count option must appear before the Total option. You cannot combine the Total command with the
Total option of the Duplicate command.
>key 1,4
>def field,5,2,integer
>duplicate none keys total field
Input Output
1111 10 1111 1 10
2222 25 2222 2 60 {25 + 35 = 60}
2222 35 3333 4 48
3333 48
Deleting Duplicate Records
There is no direct way to delete duplicate records. Specifying both the Delete and
Duplicate commands does not delete all duplicate output records. This is because the
Delete command occurs in the input phase, as records are read and selected, but the
Duplicate command occurs in the output phase after the sort has taken place. The
Duplicate command is not part of the selection process; it is the If command that determines what records are deleted. A common mistake is to specify the Duplicate and Delete commands without an If command. In this case, Suprtool asks your permission to delete all input records. Answer "No" to this question to abort the task.
It may be possible to remove duplicates from an input dataset using Suprtool, but only through roundabout methods. These are too case-specific to document here. If you need to do this, call Robelle technical support for assistance.
Self-Describing Files
When you are using the Count or Total options, the sort information is not retained in the output file. This means that if your output file is in LINK format, there are no sort keys. If you are going to use this file from Suprlink, use the BY-clause of the
LINK command to manually specify the sort keys.
Non-Self-Describing Files
If the input file is not a self-describing file and you are using Count or Total, you also need to extract all the fields from the file. You can quickly extract the fields by defining a new field that contains the entire record. For example, if your records are
56 bytes long, then you do the following to extract all the fields:
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>define entire,1,56,byte
>extract entire
Output Restrictions
When you are using the Count and Total options, the only Output formats that you can use are Data, Data-Num, Query, and Link. If you want to quickly see the Count or Total results without using a second pass, use the List Standard command.
>select * from table
>sort key_field
>duplicate none keys count total data_field
>output result,link
>list standard
>xeq
Notes
The option of Only or None must be specified before the option of Record or Keys.
Reversing the order causes a syntax error in the Duplicate command.
You cannot combine the Total command with the Total option of the Duplicate command.
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Edit Command [ED]
The Edit command is currently not supported in Suprtool/UX.
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Exit Command [E]
Exit Suprtool in one of two ways.
EXIT [ ABORT | XEQ ]
EXIT [ ABORT | XEQ ]
(Default: XEQ)
Users are often frustrated when they exit Suprtool after specifying only part of a task because Suprtool starts processing the task. To exit Suprtool without executing the current task, use the Abort option.
Typing Exit with no parameters means Exit Xeq. Suprtool recognizes special command names which specify both the Exit command and an exit option (e.g., EA means Exit ABORT).
Exit Abort [EA]
Cancels the current operation and terminates Suprtool. The Exit command without parameters always attempts to perform the task currently specified, while Exit Abort cancels the task and terminates immediately. Thus, Exit Abort is similar to Reset
All;Exit.
Examples
You began to specify a sort, stopped for coffee, and decided to cancel the task on your return:
>!# You began to specify a sort, stopped for
>!# coffee, and decided to cancel the task
>!# upon your return.
>open oracle demo reader
>select * from customer
>sort name_last; sort name_first
...coffee break ...
>exit abort {cancel the sort and terminate}
End Of Program
Exit Xeq [EX]
Signal the end of command input and the start of an extract operation. After the
Suprtool task completes, Suprtool terminates. Exit Xeq is the default option (i.e., specifying Exit starts execution of the current task).
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Examples
$/opt/robelle/bin/suprtool
>exit {no input was specified}
No action taken.
$/opt/robelle/bin/suprtool
>input rep23.newdata
>out rep23.data
>xeq {copy one file}
>input rep24.newdata
>out rep24.data
>exit {copy and stop}
Notes on Exit Xeq
If you have entered neither sort keys nor an input source, Exit terminates Suprtool without performing any task. If you have defined an input source but without any sort keys, Suprtool does a copy operation prior to stopping.
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Export Command [EXP]
You cannot use Suprtool's Export command to invoke STExport/UX, but you can run STExport/UX by itself.
/opt/robelle/bin/stexport
STExport/UX/Copyright Robelle Solutions Technology Inc. 1988-2001
(Version 4.5)
$
STExport/UX only accepts self-describing files created by Suprtool/UX or the MPE
SDUnix program.
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Extract Command [EXT]
Assembles output records by stringing together fields extracted from input records.
There can be up to 255 extracted fields, and the same field may be extracted more than once. Constant values may be used instead of the value of the field from the
Input record.
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
EXTRACT field [(subscript)] [=value |=field2 ] [,...]
EXTRACT field1 [(subscript1)] \ field2 [(subscript2)]
EXTRACT target-field [=expression]
(Default: subscript=entire field)
Field Parameter
Each extracted field must be an Eloquence field name, an SQL database table column, or a field in an SD file, or a Defined field. If the field requires an Item definition, then the Item command must precede the Extract command. Extract specifies a rearrangement of the Input data fields to produce the Output data record; there is no data conversion, unless "output xxx, ascii" is specified.
The subscript parameter is valid only for compound items. The total item is extracted if it is compound and no subscript is specified.
>extract account {extract the key value and}
>extract rating { one other field}
>output out1 {output file has two fields}
Cumulative Extracts
The Extract command is cumulative. If two Extracts are specified in one run, all fields of the two Extract commands are used.
>extract status,balance,account,purchased is equivalent to
>extract status,balance
>extract account,purchased
Constants
Extracting Constants
The value part of the Extract command is used to place a constant in each record of the output file. In this case, the field defines the type and length that the value occupies. The value portion must match the type of the field. String values will be extended with blanks to fill the entire field. If the input data does not have a field of the correct size and type, you can create one using the Define command.
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>ext account {key value}
>ext rating=0 {place the value "0" in the "rating" field}
>output out2
The total number of bytes that you can extract for all constants is 5,100 bytes for
MPE/iX and HP-UX, and 1,275 bytes for MPE/V.
Packed and Display Constants
When extracting non-negative packed and display constants, Suprtool extracts them as unsigned unless you use a leading plus sign. For the value zero, you can use a leading plus or minus sign to get a positive or negative 0.
>def field,1,6,packed
>ext field = 1 {unsigned 1}
>ext field = +1 {signed 1}
>ext field = +0 {positive 0}
>ext field = 0 {unsigned 0}
>ext field = -0 {negative 0}
Decimal Places
If a field has implied decimal places, Suprtool scales the input values according to the number of decimal places. For example,
>item tax ,decimal,2 {two implied decimal pts.}
>item total,decimal,2 {same}
>extract tax = 1.02 {specified decimal pts.}
>extract total = 100 {value stored as 10000}
>output out3
Blank Fill
If you want to create an output record that consists of fifty blanks followed by the customer name, use:
>define filler,1,50
>ext filler=" "
>ext name
String Constants
You can specify a string constant without referring to a field. For example, to leave a space between fields, you must do the following:
>extract account," ",rating
>output *,ascii
Suprtool uses the length of the string to determine the size of the field. The following example extracts the same fields as the previous example, but each output record identifies the field:
>extract "Customer Account=",account," "
>extract "Credit Rating=",rating
>output *,ascii
The output would look like:
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Customer Account=04598921 Credit Rating= 5000
Customer Account=44657844 Credit Rating= 20000
Customer Account=98753198 Credit Rating= 3000
The spaces after "Credit Rating=", before the rating value, is due to the numeric field
Rating being extracted with blanks for its leading zeros. This is the result of the Ascii option of the Output command.
Repeated Fields
If the field is an IMAGE repeated field (e.g., 10J1), the Extract command places the value in each of the repeated fields when you do not specify the subscript. If you specify a subscript, only that one repeated field will have the new constant value.
In this example, Address is a repeated field (2X20). We wish to extract the data as it exists in the input record rather than forcing it to a constant value.
>ext account {extract key value}
>ext address {take both of the repeated fields}
In the next example, we assume that the Balance field is a repeated field (12J2). We wish to make each of the 12 repeated fields in the output record equal to 100:
>extract name
>extract balance=100
If we only wanted to extract the sixth field of BALANCE and set it to 100 we would do the following:
>extract name
>extract balance(6)=100
Character Constants
Use the ^-character to specify any ASCII character. The number (the actual ASCII value), or letter (^A means control A), must follow immediately after the ^-character.
Suprtool treats character constants as strings. When you extract the constant to a field longer than one byte, Suprtool pads it with spaces.
>define field,1,1 {byte field}
>ext field = ^0 {binary zero}
>ext field = ^G {Control-G (bell)}
>ext field = ^27 {escape}
>ext field = ^252 {Roman-8 box}
>ext field = ^186 {Euro currency symbol €}
You can also extract the constant directly without referring to a defined field. This always produces a one-byte constant with no blank padding.
>ext ^0 {binary zero}
>ext ^13,^10 {Carriage Return, Line Feed}
>ext ^M,^J {CR, LF again}
>ext ^27,"&dB" {escape sequence}
Dates
Extracting Today's Date
To extract today's date, use the following:
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>item field,date,ccyymmdd {identify date format of field}
>extract field=$today {today's date}
>extract field=$today(-1) {yesterday's date}
>extract field=$today(+1) {tomorrow's date}
Use the Item command to qualify the field as a date. Suprtool uses the date format to determine the output format of the date. The $today function accepts one optional argument which is the number of days before or after today. The maximum number of days in either direction is 9999.
Oracle dates include both the date and the time. If you extract an Oracle date using
$today, the time is always 00:00 (i.e., midnight).
Extracting Relative Dates
The Extract command provides the same relative date features as the If command
(see "Date Selection" on page 113 for a complete description of the options of
$date). You must first use the Item command to identify the field name as a date.
Suprtool uses the field type and length along with the date format to determine the output format of the date. Note that the three parts of $DATE are always specified in
(year/month/day) order, regardless of the date format of the field.
>item field,date,mmddyy
>extract field=$date(*/*/*) {today's date}
>extract field=$date(*/*-1/01) {start of last month}
>extract field=$date(*/*-1/last) {end of last month}
Oracle dates include both the date and the time. If you extract an Oracle date using
$date, the time is always 00:00 (i.e., midnight).
$Stddate
Similar to the If command, the Extract command is also capable of utilizing the
$stddate function. This will allow for conversion of any of the supported Suprtool date formats to be converted to a date in the ccyymmdd date format in a double integer container.
For example,
>in sdfile {a self describing file}
>def new_ship_date,1,4,double
>item ship_date,date,mmddyyyy
>ext order_no / sales_amount
>ext new_ship_date = $stddate(ship_date)
>out salesinfo,link
>xeq
Invalid Dates
Because the $stddate must have a valid date in order to properly convert the date to the ccyymmdd format, a value of 0 will be returned for any invalid dates. An invalid date is any number of a particular date format whose date equivalent cannot be found on the calendar.
This means that if you attempt to extract use the $stddate function against a value that is not a valid date then the extracted value will be 0.
$Days
As with the $stddate function, the $days function is also available to the Extract command. You can convert any supported date to a Julian Day number in the following manner:
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
>in ordfile
>def ship-days,1,4,double
>def order-days,1,4,double
>def delay,1,4,double
>ext order-no
>ext ship-days=$days(ship-date)
>ext order-days=$days(order-date)
>ext delay=$days(ship-date)-$days(order-date)
>out neword,link
>xeq
IN=15, OUT=15. CPU-Sec=1. Wall-Sec=1.
Invalid Dates
If an invalid date is encountered, the extracted value will be zero. Therefore in the example above, if the order has not yet been shipped (ship-date does not contain a valid date) the resulting delay value will be negative.
Add and Subtract Dates
With the $days function, you can generate a date that is n days before or after any date. You only need to use two tasks: the first to generate the desired date in
JulianDay format, and a second task to put that date into your format. In the following example, we show you how to get the previous day's date.
>input YOURFILE
>def origdate,1,8
>item origdate,date,yyyymmdd
>def jdate,1,4,int
>item jdate,date,julianday
>ext origdate
>ext jdate = $days(origdate) - 1 {or +7 for next week}
>out tmpfile,link
>xeq
>in tmpfile
>def yesterday,1,8,display {your format here}
>item yesterday,date,yyyymmdd
>ext origdate
>ext yesterday = $stddate(jdate)
>out result,link
>xeq
Sample output:
ORIGDATE YESTERDAY
19990101 19981231
19991231 19991230
19990301 19990228
Date Limits
The $date function in Suprtool can generate dates between the years 1583 and 2583.
Some date formats have limits based on their particular format, such as 2027 for a
Calendar date and 2259 for the aammdd aamm, mmddaa, ddmmaa dates.
Range of Fields
Extracting a Range of Fields
You can specify a range of fields to extract using the following:
Extract Field1 \ Field4
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This feature only works with Eloquence fields, input files "equated" to an Eloquence dataset and for self-describing files. If you specify a range, Suprtool extracts all 4 of the field names between field1 and field4 inclusive. When specifying a range of a self-describing file that has been equated to an IMAGE dataset, the IMAGE dataset definition takes precedence.
>get d-sales {a self-describing file}
>ext product-no\sales-qty
>out dsales
>xeq is exactly the same as:
>get d-sales {a self-describing file}
>ext product-no {first field in the range}
>ext product-price
>ext purch-date
>ext sales-qty {last field in the range}
>out dsales
>xeq
Extracting a Range of Subscripted Fields
Suprtool accepts a subscript on either field in a range. You can even use this feature to extract a range from a single field. For example, if sales_amt is a 12J2 field:
>in sales {a self-describing file}
>ext sales_amt(4)\sales_amt(6)
>out dsales
>xeq is equivalent to:
>in sales {a self-describing file}
>ext sales_amt(4) {first subscripted field}
>ext sales_amt(5) {intermediate subfield}
>ext sales_amt(6) {last subscripted field}
>out dsales
>xeq
Alternate Syntax for Extracting a Range
Suprtool accepts a slash "/" in place of the backslash "\" to specify a range. Use the slash with care, because it is a valid character in field names. For example,
>extract a/b would produce the error message:
Error: Field "A/B" does not exist
To use a slash in an extract range, surround it with spaces:
>extract a / b
Numeric Expressions
You can specify arithmetic expressions for any numeric data-type in the Extract command. Arithmetic expressions involve the operators +, -, *, / and mod. Extract arithmetic expressions work exactly as If command arithmetic expressions. To extract an expression, use this syntax,
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Target-Field
The target-field determines the byte-length, data-type, and repeat-count for the expression. The expression is extracted during the output phase and cannot be used by other Suprtool commands that accept fields (e.g., sort). To avoid confusion, it is best to define a new field name for the target-field instead of using an existing field name.
Examples
>extract budget99 = actual98 + 1000
>extract total = cost * qty
>extract day = ccyymmdd-date mod 100
In the following example, the field total is used twice. In the first case, it is used to tell Suprtool how to format the arithmetic expression. In the second case, it is used in the sort command. Warning: In this example, the output file is sorted by the value of total as it appears in the input record. It is not be sorted by cost * qty.
>extract total = cost * qty
>sort total {sort by input total}
Restrictions
You can only use one expression in each Extract command, and the expression must be the last item. If you want to extract several expressions or more fields after an expression, you need to use several Extract commands.
Incorrect
>extract name, i=sales + tips, c=cost + expense, dept
Correct
>extract name, i=sales + tips
>extract c=cost + expense
>extract dept
Constants vs. Expressions
If you have an arithmetic expression that starts with a constant, Suprtool assumes that you are attempting to extract a single constant value and not an arithmetic expression. To specify an arithmetic expression that starts with a constant, surround the expression with parentheses. For example,
Incorrect
>extract c = 6000 - cost
Error: Missing comma or invalid arithmetic expression
Correct
>extract c = (6000 - cost)
Numeric Truncation
The accuracy of arithmetic computations is limited to approximately sixteen digits.
Suprtool may truncate four-word integers (quad), or large packed-decimal numbers, or display numbers when they are converted to floating-point. Suprtool does not produce any error or warning in this case.
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Division by Zero
Suprtool reports an error in the input record number if an arithmetic computation results in division by zero. Use Set Ignore On to force Suprtool to ignore division by zero errors. With Set Ignore On, the result of division by zero is zero.
The speed of a task decreases when you ask Suprtool to ignore many division by zero errors. It is better to check for zero in the If expression before using it in division.
>if qty <> 0 {to avoid division by zero}
>extract average = total / qty
$Abs function
Suprtool supports an $abs function, which returns the absolute value of a number.
For example, if a field called Credit contains the value -547.83, the $abs function returns 547.83.
This function will work on a field or even on an expression such as:
>def newcredit,1,4,double
>ext newcredit = $abs(credit / 100 * 1.07)
This function will also work in the If command:
>if $abs(credit / 100 * 1.07) > 500.00
$Truncate function
Suprtool supports a $truncate function which returns the number to the left of a decimal place. For example if the field stddev contains the value 547.83, the
$truncate function will return 547. Note that there is no rounding.
This function will work on fields and expressions. For example,
>def newdev,1,4,double
>ext newdev = $truncate(stddev / 100 * 1.07)
This function will also work in the If command:
>if $truncate(stddev / 100 * 1.07) > 200
String Expressions
You can combine byte-type fields together and use the built-in string functions to create new fields out of existing ones. This can reduce the number of tasks required to provide a solution. String expressions may involve the + operator and $upper,
$lower, $trim, $ltrim or $rtrim. To extract a string expression, use this syntax:
Target-Field
The target-field determines the byte-length for the expression. The data-type must be
Byte or Char. The expression is extracted during the output phase and cannot be used by other Suprtool commands that accept fields (e.g., Sort).
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Examples
>extract id-no = warehouse-no + bin-no
>extract full-name = first-name + last-name
Constants vs. Expressions
If you have an string expression that starts with a string, Suprtool assumes that you are attempting to extract a single string value and not an string expression. To specify a string expression that starts with a constant, surround the expression with parentheses. For example,
Incorrect
>extract name = " " + product-desc
Error: Missing comma or invalid arithmetic expression
Correct
>extract name = (" " + product-desc)
Variable Length Strings
String expressions use variable-length strings. Suprtool keeps track of the length of every string, and all operations are done using the actual string length. For fields, the length of the string is the length of the field. If you do not want to retain all the spaces in a field, use one of the built-in trimming functions.
String constants are created with the exact length of the constant. For example, the string "abc" is three characters long and the string "a" is one.
When assigning the string expression to the target field, Suprtool pads the final string value with spaces to fill out the target field. String expressions longer than the target field generate an error.
>in testfile
>def a,1,10,byte
>ext a="I'm too long for this container"
Error: String is too long for the specified item
String Truncation
Suprtool produces an error if the string expression is longer than the target field. You cannot override this error with Set Ignore On. To help avoid the error, you may want to trim the expression of trailing spaces before assigning it to the target field. For example,
>extract new-field = $trim(a + b + c)
Upshifting Strings ($Upper)
Use the built-in function $upper to upshift all the characters of a string expression into uppercase characters. This function can be used to upshift a single field, a complicated string expression, or any subpart of an expression. Both ASCII and
Roman-8 characters are upshifted by $upper. For example,
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>extract city-up = $upper(city)
>extract full-name = $upper(first + last)
Downshifting Strings ($Lower)
If you want to downshift all characters of a string expression to lowercase, use the built-in function $lower. This function can be used to downshift a single field, a complicated string expression, or any subpart of an expression. Both ASCII and
Roman-8 characters are downshifted by $lower. For example,
>extract city-lower-case = $lower(city)
>extract city-state = $lower(city + state)
Trimming Spaces Using $Trim, $LTrim, $RTrim
Use one of three built-in string functions to remove leading or trailing spaces from a string expression. The three functions are:
$Trim: Remove leading and trailing spaces from the string expression.
Data Conversion
You can convert numeric fields from one data-type to another. Any nonbyte field type is considered to be numeric. You can also lengthen or truncate character fields.
The general syntax for doing conversions is:
Target-Field
The target-field determines the byte-length, data-type, and repeat-count for the expression. The expression is extracted during the output phase and cannot be used by other Suprtool commands that accept fields (e.g., Sort). To avoid confusion, it is best to define a new field name for the target-field instead of using an existing field name.
The following example shows defining a new target-field as a double integer. The
Extract command target-field then takes the definition from the Define command and extracts data from the source-field (display-field).
>in oldfile
>def salesqty,1,4,double
>ext order-no / order-date
>ext salesqty = display-field
Packed and Display Fields
When the target of an extract conversion is a packed- or display-type field, Suprtool always converts positive values to a neutral packed- or display-value. To ensure that expressions with positive values have a positive result, use the $signed function:
>extract packed_field = $signed(int_field)
>extract display_field = $signed(dbl_field / 10)
Truncation errors can occur when Suprtool converts from nonfloating-point to floating-point. See the discussion under Numeric Truncation above.
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Byte Fields
Use the Extract command to shorten or lengthen byte-type fields.
If the target-field is longer than the source-field, Suprtool fills the trailing space in the target-field with spaces.
Byte to Numeric Conversion
Suprtool cannot explicitly convert from a byte field to a numeric field such as a double integer. The Extract command, however, does allow conversion from a display field to a double integer (or any other numeric field).
You can define a byte field to be a display field if all of the characters in the field contain a number. For example if you have a six-character byte field that looks like this:
012345 you can define it in the following manner:
>def display-field,1,6,display
This field can then be converted to any of the other numeric types that Suprtool supports.
If the field is six characters and contains blanks, you would have to pad the field with zeros so that Suprtool can manipulate the field as a display field.
Restrictions
You can only use one expression in each Extract command, and the expression must be the last item. If you want to extract several expressions or more fields after an expression, you need to use several Extract commands.
Incorrect
>extract name, i=sales + tips, c=cost, dept
Correct
>extract name, i=sales + commission
>extract c=cost
>extract dept
Extracting Bits
The Extract command can be used to define individual bits from one data item as separate fields.
>def order-shipped,1,2,int
>def order-paid ,1,2,int
>ext order-shipped=status-field.(0:1)
>ext order-paid=status-field.(1:1)
This makes it easier to check the status of certain bits within a given field.
EBCDIC Conversions
Use the $etoa or $atoe functions to convert specific fields from EBCDIC to ASCII or vice versa. Each of these functions accepts a single parameter that is a byte-type field:
Extract $ETOA(char-field)
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Extract $ATOE(char-field)
There are several restrictions on the $etoa and $atoe functions:
• They do not work with either the ASCII or PRN output options.
• You cannot extract an EBCDIC constant. The following example would produce an error message:
>extract $etoa(char-field) = 'abcdef'
• You cannot extract a range of fields using $etoa or $atoe.
Notes
The Extract command is valid only with
• Output xxx,data
• Output xxx,data,num
• Output xxx,query
• Output xxx,link
• Output xxx,ascii
• Output xxx,prn
The Extract occurs logically after the sort phase, if any, but prior to the final Output,
Put, or List. An If command can refer to fields of the input record that are not included in the extracted output record. The sort keys can be fields that are not among those extracted.
If the extracted record length is shorter than the input record length, Suprtool attempts to speed up sorts by doing the extract before sorting. Suprtool can only do the extract before sorting if the output option is DATA (the default), QUERY, or
LINK, and all of the sort keys are included in the Extracted fields.
One advantage of not using the Extract command is that the output file from
Suprtool has exactly the same format as the input dataset which created the file. You can then use the =setname option of the Input command to define all of the fields in the output file. Even if you change your database structure, many of your job streams that use Suprtool and the =setname option will not have to be changed.
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Form Command [F]
The Form command displays information about an Eloquence or SQL database, or the current Select command, or the fields in a self-describing file. The Form command is similar to the Form command of QUERY on the HP e3000.
FORM [ SETS | ITEMS | PATHS | dataset | data-item | filename ]
FORM [ SETS | ITEMS | PATHS
dataset | data-item | filename ]
(Default: depends)
The Form command displays the structure of a database, dataset, table or selfdescribing file.
When showing the form of an Eloquence dataset or a self-describing file, Suprtool shows the byte offset of each field after the subcount, type, and sublength. The first field always appears at offset one. If you have specified a date format or the number of implied decimal places with the Item command, these attributes appear as part of the form listing.
Dataset List
>ba sample
>form sets
Database: SAMPLE
Set Item Entry Load Entry
Sets: Num Type Count Capacity Count Factor Length B/F
CUSTOMERS 1 MDX 10 1355 1177 87 % 112 0
PARTS 2 MDX 10 524 182 35 % 53 0
ID 3 MDX 1 2259 47 2 % 2 0
ORDERS 4 DDX 7 1008 47 5 % 21 0
LINEITEMS 5 DDX 7 1008 272 27 % 22 0
Suprtool shows the type of each dataset (e.g., "M" for Manual master, "A" for
Automatic master, "D" for Detail). If you have enabled dynamic dataset expansion,
Suprtool adds "DX" to the type of the dataset (e.g., "MDX", "DDX").
Detail Datasets
If you request information about a specific detail dataset, Suprtool prints the path information in DBSCHEMA format. The path shows the related master dataset and the sort item-name. When displying the form of an Eloquence dataset, Suprtool shows the capacity in a format similar to the one in DBSCHEMA.
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>form orders
Database: SAMPLE
ORDERS Detail Set# 4
Entry: Offset
ORDERNO X16 1
ORDERID I2 17 (!ID)
ORDERDATE I2 21
CUSTNO X6 25 (CUSTOMERS)
ORDERSTAT I1 31
ORDERTYPE X2 33
ORDERVALUE E4 35
Capacity: 1008 (0), 0, 0, 0 Entries: 47 Highwater: 0 Bytes: 42
Master Datasets
The Form Sets command indicates which datasets have MDX enabled. A Form command on these datasets shows details of their expansion setting.
>form parts
Database: SAMPLE
PARTS Master Set# 2
Entry: Offset
PARTNO X16 1 <<Search Field>>
PARTLOOKUP X10 17
DESCRIPA X20 27
DESCRIPB X20 47
PARTUNIT X2 67
PROFITGROUP X4 69
MATNUMBER X16 73
PRICEUNIT X2 89
PRICE1 E4 91
PRICE2 E4 99
Capacity: 524 (0), 0, 0, 0 Entries: 182 Bytes: 106
SQL Select
When showing the form of an SQL select, Suprtool shows the column's name, the
SQL type and the Suprtool type. When showing the form of a self-describing file,
Suprtool shows the byte offset of each field after the subcount, type, and sublength.
The first field always appears at offset one.
>open oracle scott tiger
>select * from emp
>form
Column Name: Oracle Type: Nulls: Suprtool Type:
EMPNO Number (4) N Integer
ENAME Varchar2 (10) Y Byte
JOB Varchar2 (9) Y Byte
MGR Number (4) Y Integer
HIREDATE Date Y Oracle Date
SAL Number (7,2) Y Packed
COMM Number (7,2) Y Packed
DEPTNO Number (2) Y Integer
SQL Database
If an Allbase database is open and no input file has been specified, the default Form command shows all of the tables in the database. If a Select command has been specified, the default Form command shows the columns in the Select command.
The exact format of the Form command is different for each SQL database.
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Self-Describing Files
The Link output option produces an SD file with information about how the file was sorted, what fields are compound, and the date format or the number of implied decimal places for any fields. The Form command shows all of this information:
File: custfile (SD Version B.00.00) Has line feeds
Entry: Offset
CHAR_FIELD X5 1 <<Sort #1>>
REPEATED_I1 3I1 6 {compound field}
DATE_FIELD J2 12 <<YYYYMMDD>>
COST_FIELD J2 16 << .2 >>
Entry Length: 20 Blocking: 1
Default Form
If a Chain, Get, Select, or Input command of a self-describing file has been entered, a
Form command without parameters shows the fields in the current input source. If a
Base command has been specified, but no input source, a Form command without parameters does a Form Sets. If an Open command has been specified, but no input source, a Form command without parameters shows the tables in the SQL database.
Form Keywords
The Form command shows items, paths, and sets before it searches for a dataset or file with these names. Use a string (e.g., "sets") to display the form of a dataset or file that matches one of the Form keywords.
>form "paths" {paths is the name of a dataset}
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Get Command [G]
Selects an Eloquence dataset from a previously opened Base as the input source for the next extract. You must have read access to all fields in the dataset entry. Only one Chain, Get, or Input command is allowed per extract task. Get always reads the dataset serially.
GET [(startrecord/[endrecord]) | (#count)]
GET setname [(startrecord/[endrecord]) | (#count)]
(Default: all records)
Dataset Input
The first example shows the most common use of the Get command. An input dataset is specified as input to Suprtool. We select a subset of the entire input dataset using the If command:
>base store
>get d-inventory {serially read dataset}
>if unit-cost<10000 {the UNIT-COST field is}
>output out1 { automatically defined by Get}
>xeq
Numrecs is another way to select only a few records.
Selection by Record Number
The (startrecord/endrecord) parameter permits selection of input records on the basis of the Eloquence record numbers. These numbers always start with 1, and the
endrecord parameter is assumed to be the last record in the dataset if it isn't specified.
Note that you should use extreme care when you are using the record number selection option on master datasets. This is because the record numbers of master dataset entries can be changed as entries are added or deleted from the dataset. For example, if there are deleted entries in the master dataset, then you could get fewer records than expected.
When debugging software, it is convenient to scan the first few records of a dataset.
Specifying a startrecord/endrecord parameter makes this easy:
>get m-product(1/20) {first twenty records}
>list {produce a formatted list of each …}
>xeq {… record with no output file}
This example gets any records that are in the first twenty IMAGE locations. This may be fewer than twenty records, if there were deleted or unused entries in the first twenty record numbers.
Random Selection
The #count parameter selects every "nth" record from the dataset, where "n" is equal to count. This option is designed to allow "random" selection from the dataset. It cannot be combined with the (startrecord/endrecord) option.
Test databases can be constructed from random samplings of production databases.
Using the #count parameter and the Put command we build a test dataset:
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>base store
>get d-inventory(#15) {every 15th record is read}
>put d-inventory,test {put to the d-inventory dataset in …}
>exit {… Test database}
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Help Command [H]
Show what commands and options are available in Suprtool.
HELP [ command | keyword [ ,option ] ]
(Default: browse through the entire help file)
Command Help
If you specify any parameters, Help first assumes that you want help on a Suprtool command. If you know the structure of the help file, you can additionally specify one of the keywords under the command name.
>help ext {help on the Extract command}
>help ext,notes {Notes section of the Extract command}
Keyword Help
If Suprtool cannot find any help in the "Commands" section of the help file, it assumes that you specified one of the outer-level keywords in the help file. To see this list of keywords, type help with no parameters. You see a short introduction to
Suprtool and then a list of keywords. You can specify any of these keywords on the
Help command. You can also specify a subkeyword.
>help start {Quick Start section}
>help start,task {Task section of Quick Start}
Quick Help - HQ
HQ asks Suprtool to look under the keyword Quick in the help file. Quick contains the text from the Suprtool Quick Reference Guide, offering the experienced user a quick review of the syntax of any command.
>hq input {quick description of Input}
>hq commands {quick list of command names}
Notes
If no parameters are specified, Help allows you to browse through the "help" file.
The Help Command uses the QHELP subsystem to allow you to look at the material in the file /opt/robelle/help/suprtool (which contains most of the user manual). For
"help in help", type "?" when you see the QHELP prompt character ("?"). The help file is organized into levels. To go back to the previous level, press Return instead of a key name. If you press F8, you will exit the QHELP subsystem and return to
Suprtool.
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If Command [IF]
Specifies a subset of records to select from the input source during the next extract task. The If command supports full logical expressions, with comparisons between all data-types, between data fields and constant values, or between one data field and another. The If command also provides partial string compares, bit field extracts, subscripted IMAGE fields, AND-OR-NOT operators, and parentheses to override precedence. You can use arithmetic expressions involving any numeric data-types.
IF expression
Note: The examples below show multiple If commands. These are for illustrative purposes only. Suprtool does not permit multiple If commands in a single task. Instead you can combine multiple conditions using AND and OR.
Alternatives to the If command
There are a few selection criteria that the If command cannot perform. In these cases, you need to use other Suprtool commands. If you wish to select by record numbers, use the record number options in the Input command. If you wish to limit the number of records selected, use the Numrecs command.
There Is No Else Clause
The If command in Suprtool does not have an Else clause. To select the records that do not match the If criteria, use a second task with the same criteria negated by a
NOT.
>input myfile {this task is the "If … then"}
>if expression
>output file1
>xeq
>input myfile {this task is the "else"}
>if not (expression)
>output file2
>xeq
Expressions
An expression specifies the logical criteria that Suprtool uses to select records from the input source.
Simple Expressions
The simplest expression is a single comparison between two fields (e.g., A=B) or a field and a constant (e.g., A="XX"):
field relation field
field relation constant
Fields
A field can be a temporary, Defined field, or a field from a self-describing file, or an
Eloquence field, or a column from a database table. Each field has a type (see "Key
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Command [K]" on page 128 for further details). The constant must match the type
of the field. If the field has a byte-type, you must surround the constant with quotes.
>if name="MARIE REIMER" {name is byte}
>if rating>10000 {rating is integer}
>if balance=arrears {compare two fields}
Constants
A constant is a value that matches the data-type of field. Constants are either a string constant in quotes, a numeric constant, or a date constant specified with $date or
$today. See the next section about Constants for more details.
Constant Type
"KERRY LATHWELL" string constant
$date(00/07/09) date constant July 9, 2000
Relations
A relation is one of the size comparison symbols (Suprtool does not use words like
"EQUALS" as in QUERY):
Relational operator Means
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>=
<=
<> greater than or equal to less than or equal to not equal to
Complex Expressions
Complex expressions can be made by combining the AND, OR, and NOT operators, arithmetic operators (+, -, *, / and mod), and parentheses. The order of precedence of operators, from highest to lowest, is
Operator Precedence
( ... )
NOT
AND
OR
Highest.
Take the opposite.
Both must be true.
One or the other must be true.
* /
+ -
Higher than addition and subtraction.
Lowest.
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Short-circuit evaluation means that the If command does not always need to evaluate all the parts of the command.
Use parentheses where necessary to change the order of evaluation.
>if status="1" and amount>100 or purchased="000115"
>if (status="1" or status="2") and amount>100
Multiple Values
You can check a data field for several test values without using the AND and OR operators. After the equals or not-equals sign, list the alternate values separated by commas.
The OR operator is = (equal sign). Instead of "IF A=5 OR A=6 OR A=7", use "IF
A=5,6,7". This selects a record if A is equal to 5, 6, or 7.
The AND operator is <>. Instead of "IF A<>5 AND A<>6 AND A<>7", use "IF
A<>5,6,7". This selects a record if A is anything but 5, 6, or 7.
>if field = 5,6,7
>if part = "12345","67890","39201","92308","14892"
>if delivered <> 981231,990101
This method works well if you are searching for a small number of values. Use the
$lookup function to check a data field for many test values.
The $lookup function returns TRUE, if the specified field name contains a value from the specified table. You can also look for values that are not in a table.
IF NOT $LOOKUP(tablename,fieldname)
See the Table command for a complete description of how to combine tables and the
$lookup function. (Note: Suprtool's Table command is not related to tables in
databases.)
$lookup parameter
tablename fieldname
function
The name of a table specified in the Table command.
A field from the input record. This field must be exactly the same length as the item used in the Table command.
Performance of $Lookup
The $lookup function can be quite slow when you are searching huge tables.
Because the If command uses short-circuit evaluation, $lookup should be specified as the last part of the If command. For example,
>if status = "10" and $lookup(cust-table,account) is faster than
>if $lookup(cust-table,account) and status = "10" because Suprtool can evaluate status = "10" faster than $lookup. When the status is not "10" Suprtool knows the record will not be selected, therefore there is no need to do the $lookup.
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$Null(fieldname)
The If $null(fieldname) command selects any rows that have null values in them.
This feature is available only for SQL databases and only on columns that allow null values:
>if $null(SALESTOTAL)
If you want to find only those values that are not null, you can add the NOT keyword in front of $null:
>if not $null(SALESTOTAL)
Constants
This section describes numeric and string constants. See also Date Selection.
Numeric Constants
Numeric constants are not enclosed in quotes. Numeric constants may be just simple whole numbers (e.g., 5, 0, -56, 10004) or they may have a decimal point (e.g., 5., 0.0,
-.56, 99.9, 1.4). IEEE numbers may also have a scale factor (e.g., 5E-5, 0.01E+4).
"Over-punches" for the sign are not required, or recognized, in Suprtool. Always enter -11 as -11, not 1J for a DISPLAY field.
String Constants
String constants are delimited with double- or single-quote marks. That is, either
"VANC" or 'VANC'. Any characters within quotes are not upshifted. If the constant is shorter than the field to which it is being compared, the constant is padded with blanks. String constants are expected for fields of type BYTE, U, or X, but numeric constants are expected for fields of type Z (zoned decimal).
>if field = " " {check for all blanks}
>if field = "XX" {double-quotes are okay}
>if field = 'XX' {so are single-quotes}
If you want to compare for a quote itself, you include two quotes in the string for each quote you want.
>if field = "AB""CD" {look for AB"CD}
Character Constants
Use the ^-character to specify any ASCII character. The number (the actual ASCII value), or letter (^A means control A), must follow immediately after the ^-character.
Suprtool treats character constants as strings. When you compare the constant to a field longer than one byte, Suprtool pads the constant with spaces.
>define field,1,1 {byte field}
>if field = ^0 {binary zero}
>if field = ^G {Control-G (bell)}
>if field = ^27 {escape}
>if field = ^252 {Roman-8 box}
To look for "null values" or "low values" in byte-fields, it is usually sufficient to check the first byte for a binary zero:
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>define first-byte,bigfield,1,byte
>if first-byte = ^0
Subscripts
Use subscripts to access individual items in repeated fields, or to access substrings.
Numeric Subscripts
For repeated numeric fields only one index is allowed.
If Table has the form 10J2, it holds ten double integers.
• Table(1) is the first sub-item.
• Table is the same as Table(1).
• Table(5) is the fifth sub-item.
>if table(5) = 23
>if table(2) = 20 or table(4) = 30
>if table(8) = 31 and table(9) = 28
Character Subscripts
Character string fields may have 1, 2, or 3 subscripts after them. Character string fields are allowed more than one subscript value.
If ADDR has the form 5X30, it consists of 5 substrings of 30 characters each.
• ADDR(1) is the first 30-character sub-item of ADDR.
• ADDR without subscript is the same as ADDR(1).
• ADDR(2) is the second 30-character sub-item of ADDR.
• ADDR(2,4) is the second sub-item, starting with the 4th byte and extending for the remainder of the sub-item, 27 bytes.
• ADDR(2,4,6) starts at the same location, but extends for only 6 bytes.
If NAME has the form X50, it is not a repeated field.
• NAME is the same as NAME(1).
• NAME(1,4,6) is the first (and only) sub-item, starting at the 4th byte and extending for 6 bytes.
• NAME(1,10) is a field that starts at the 10th byte and implicitly extends to the end of the field (for the remaining 41 bytes).
>if name(1,4,6) = "HAWAII"
>if addr(3) = "VANCOUVER, B.C."
>if addr(3,11,20) == "@B.C.@" {pattern matching}
Numeric Expressions
Bit Selections
The If command can extract and test any series of one or more contiguous bits in a field. Suprtool allows bit extracts only on Integer or Logical fields of two bytes in length (one 16-bit word). To do a bit extract from another type of field, first use
Define to redefine the data as a two-byte Logical field.
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• Suprtool Commands
Once Suprtool extracts a bit string, it always treats it as an Unsigned Integer, a
Logical, and never interprets it as negative. The format for bit extracts calls for a starting bit number and a bit count. The 16 bits in a computer word are numbered from the left, 0 to 15. The two bytes to extract from need not be on a "word
field . (startbit : bitcount)
>define bitfield,name,2,logical
>if bitfield.(4:2)=3
How to Check a Byte for a Numeric Value
Because Suprtool does not have one-byte integers, it can be difficult to check a single byte for a specific numeric value. Use a two-byte integer Define field and the bit-extract operator to solve this problem:
>define word,transcode,2,integer
>if word.(0:8)=13
See "Character Constants" on page 106 for an alternate method.
Decimal Places
Use the Item command to specify the number of implied decimal places in an item.
If you do not do this, you must scale all numbers in the If command. For example, let's assume that you want to find all inventory records with a cost equal to $80.59. If you do not use the Item command, your If command would look like this:
>if cost = 8059 {no decimal places}
By telling Suprtool about the number of decimal places in the cost item, your If command looks more natural (which usually means you will make fewer mistakes):
>item cost,decimal,2
>if cost = 80.59 {decimal places included}
Numeric Conversion
The If command can compare two numeric fields to each other (not just one field to a constant). All relation operators are supported: <, <=, =, <>, >, and >=. However, you cannot compare a byte-field to a numeric-type field.
Suprtool usually converts the field on the left side of a relational operator to floatingpoint. Then the floating-point number is converted into the type of the field on the right side of a relational operator and the comparison is done. The exceptions to this rule are integer-to-double, packed-to-packed, and display-to-display comparisons, which use a direct comparison algorithm.
Truncation errors can occur when Suprtool converts from one field type to floatingpoint. See also Accuracy and Numeric Truncation.
Arithmetic Expressions
You can specify arithmetic expressions for any numeric data-type in the If command.
Arithmetic expressions involve the operators +, -, *, / and mod. The Mod operator returns the remainder between a dividend and a divisor. Arithmetic expressions cannot start with a numeric constant (e.g., if 2 + a = 10 is invalid). Arithmetic is not allowed on byte-type fields. If you have a byte-type field that consists entirely of numeric digits, redefine the field as display type and use the redefined field name in the If command.
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Examples
>if field + 10 = 1115 {numeric field}
>if cost * qty > 10000
>if total < qty * price + tax
>if yymmdd-date / 100 mod 100 <= 03 {first quarter}
Division by Zero
Suprtool reports an error and the input record number if an arithmetic computation results in division by zero. Use Set Ignore On to force Suprtool to ignore division by zero errors. With Set Ignore On, the result of division by zero is zero.
Your task executes more slowly if you have a lot of division by zero errors and you have asked Suprtool to ignore them. A better approach is to check for zero in the If expression before using it in division:
>if $read
- qty <> 0 and {avoid division by zero!}
- total / qty > 100
- //
Missing Features
Arithmetic overflow in computations will cause Suprtool to abort.
Accuracy
By default, Suprtool uses floating-point arithmetic to compute. In some cases, there can be slight inaccuracies due to rounding errors.
Numeric Truncation
The accuracy of arithmetic computations is limited to approximately sixteen digits.
Suprtool may truncate four-word integers (quad) or large packed-decimal or display numbers when they are converted to floating-point. Suprtool does not produce any error or warning in this case.
$Abs function
Suprtool supports an $abs function, which returns the absolute value of a number.
For example, if a field called Credit contains the value -547.83, the $abs function returns 547.83.
This function will work on a field or even on an expression such as:
>if $abs(credit / 100 * 1.07) > 500.00
This function will also work in the Extract command:
>def newcredit,1,4,double
>ext newcredit = $abs(credit / 100 * 1.07)
$Truncate function
Suprtool supports a $truncate function which returns the number to the left of a decimal place. For example if the field stddev contains the value 547.83, the
$truncate function will return 547. Note that there is no rounding.
This function will work fields and expressions:
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>if $truncate(stddev / 100 * 1.07) > 200
This function will also work in the Extract command:
>def newdev,1,4,double
>ext newdev = $truncate(stddev / 100 * 1.07)
String Expressions
You can do comparisons with byte-type fields in numerous ways using Suprtool.
These powerful features minimize the number of tasks you must execute in order to select the data you need. The fewer the number of tasks, the faster your data is delivered to the users and applications that need it.
You can combine byte-type fields together and use the built-in string functions to create string expressions. String expressions involve the + operator and the other string functions such as $lower, $upper, $trim, $ltrim and $rtrim.
Fixed vs. Variable Length Strings
String comparisons are done using fixed- and variable-length strings. For most users, there should be no difference between the two types of strings. When doing string comparisons, Suprtool always pads shorter strings with spaces, with the one exception of comparing two fixed-length fields (see "Byte Fields" below).
String expressions involving the + operator or the $upper, $lower, $trim, $ltrim and
$rtrim built-in functions are done using variable-length strings. Suprtool keeps track of the length of every string, and all operations are done using the actual string length. For fields, the length of the string is the length of the field. If you do not want to retain all of the spaces in a field, use one of the built-in trimming functions.
When creating string expressions, string constants are created with the exact length of the constant. For example, the string constant "abc" is three characters long and the string "a" is one.
Byte Fields
For historical reasons, comparing two byte-type fields to each other is a special case.
If the two fields are exactly the same length, Suprtool compares them completely. If one field is shorter, the comparison is done for the length of the shortest field.
Suprtool does not check for spaces in the trailing characters of the longer field. For example,
>define short, 1,10 {ten character field}
>define long ,11,15 {fifteen character field}
>if short = long
In this example, Suprtool compares the ten bytes in the short field with the first ten bytes of the long field, but ignores the last five bytes of the long field. If the expression on either side of the equal sign consisted of more than one field (using the
+ operator) or involved any of the string functions, ($upper, $lower, $trim, $ltrim or
$rtrim), Suprtool would have compared both sides of the equal sign by padding the shorter field with spaces. It is only the case where you are directly comparing one byte-type field to another that Suprtool uses the length of the shortest field for the comparison.
You cannot compare a byte-field to a numeric-type field. If you have a byte-field that consists entirely of numeric digits, redefine the field as a display-type and use the redefined field name in the If command.
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Character Type
Byte-type fields can also be checked to see whether they contain only Alpha,
Numeric, Alphanumeric, or Special characters. The complete field is compared against the specified character types.
Type Characters
Alpha A-Z, a-z (52 characters)
Special
Alphanumeric anything else (194 characters, including spaces, punctuation, Roman-8 letters, binary junk)
A-Z, a-z, 0-9 (62 characters)
For the test result to be true, all the characters in the field must be of the specified character type. To test a substring, use the Define command to define a subfield.
>if field = alpha
>if field <> numeric
Examples:
String Class
"1234" numeric
"12.3" no class, contains both numeric and special
"ABCD" alpha
"B JONES" no class, contains both alpha and special
" " special
"A1B2" alphanumeric
Pattern Matching
Suprtool can also select records based on a pattern of characters, rather than an exact string of characters. For example, use the following to select all records with
"ROBERT" anywhere in the Name field,
>if name == "@ROBERT@"
The double equals (==) is the operator for pattern matching. The at signs (@) means anything before or after "ROBERT" is acceptable, including nothing.
For character fields, there are two comparison operators for patterns: "==" (matches), and "><" (does not match). The pattern is specified as a quoted string, using the special characters listed below. Embedded spaces are allowed in the pattern and must be matched in the target field.
These are the special characters:
Character Meaning
@
#
Zero, or more, characters of any type.
A single numeric character.
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^
!
?
~
&
A single alphabetic or numeric character.
Zero, or more, blank characters.
Escape character to match the next character explicitly (&@ looks for the @ character).
Reserved for future use.
Reserved for future use.
Any other character must be matched, one for one.
>if name=="@BIRD@" {does name contain BIRD anywhere?}
>if name=='@JIM@BIRD@' {does name contain JIM, perhaps …}
{… other characters, then BIRD?}
>if name><"@#@" {does name not contain numerics?}
>if name=='@qedit@','@suprtool@' {qedit or suprtool?}
For more information, see Special Characters in the Glossary.
Trimming Spaces ($Trim, $Ltrim, $Rtrim)
Use one of three built-in string functions to remove leading or trailing spaces from a string expression. The three functions are:
$Trim: Remove leading and trailing spaces from the string expression.
Because Suprtool pads shorter strings with spaces when doing comparisons, trimming spaces is most useful when creating a combined string with several fields.
For example, you might want to combine a person's first and last name (including a space between the two):
>if $trim(first) + " " + $trim(last) = "Joe Smith"
Mixed Case ($Upper and $Lower)
By default, Suprtool does an exact match when comparing two string expressions. If the expressions vary in the capitalization of characters, Suprtool finds them to be different. To do caseless string comparisons or pattern matches, use the $upper or
$lower functions. Both ASCII and Roman-8 characters are shifted by $upper and
$lower. For example,
>if $upper(city) = "VANCOUVER"
>if $lower(city) = "edmonton"
Note that if you use the $upper or $lower functions, Suprtool does not upshift or downshift any constants used in the comparison. You must explicitly specify the constants in the correct case or you can use $upper or $lower with the constant:
>if $upper(city) = $upper("vancouver")
Use the $upper or $lower functions for caseless pattern matching. As with other comparison operators, you must specify constants in the correct case when doing pattern matching:
>if $upper(city) == "VAN@"
>if $lower(city) == "ed@"
You can use $upper and $lower with string expressions that combine many fields and string functions as shown in the following example:
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
>if $read
- $upper($trim(first) +
- " " +
- $trim(last))
- = "JOE SMITH"
- //
Date Selection
The If command has four functions to help select records based on dates: $date,
$today, $days and $stddate. The $date function works for any date. The $today function works for the current date and dates relative to today. The $stddate and
$days functions work for almost any date. To use these date functions, you must first identify the date format of an item by using the Item command.
The $date function makes it easier to specify a target date for certain date formats
(e.g., PHdate or ASK). To select records based on a specific date, use this feature:
>if field=$date(year/month/day)
Suprtool checks the date's validity. To select the transactions for January 1999, you would do the following:
>item trans_date,date,phdate
>if trans_date >= $date(1999/01/01) and &
trans_date <= $date(1999/01/31)
Relative Dates
You can specify a relative date using the $date function. Then you can create job streams that don't rely on hard-coded dates. The general syntax of the $date function is:
$date(year/month/day)
The year can be a specific number (e.g., 2000) or an asterisk "*" for the current year.
To specify a relative year, you add or subtract years from the one you specified:
>if field=$date(2000/01/01) {January 1, 2000}
>if field=$date(2000-1/01/01) {January 1, 1999}
>if field=$date(*-1/01/01) {January 1, last year}
The month can be a specific number (e.g., 6 for June) or an asterisk "*" for the current month. To specify a relative month, you add or subtract months from the one you specified:
>if field=$date(2000/06-1/01) {May 1, 2000}
>if field=$date(*/*/01) {start of current year and month}
>if field=$date(*/*-1/01) {start of last month}
>if field=$date(*/*-18/*) {exactly eighteen months ago}
The day can be a specific number (e.g., 15), an asterisk "*" for the current day, the word "first" for the first day of the month, or the word "last" for the last day of the month. You cannot add or subtract relative days; use $today instead.
>if field=$date(2001/01/first) {January 1, 2001}
>if field=$date(*/*/*) {today's date}
>if field=$date(*/*-1/last) {last day of previous month}
Combining these features makes it possible to generate batch jobs that require no operator input. For example, to select all of the transactions for last month you would use:
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>item trans_date,date,phdate
>if trans_date >= $date(*/*-1/first) and &
trans_date <= $date(*/*-1/last)
Month End
Suprtool is always expecting a valid date. Suppose that you have a month-end job that contains the following If command:
>if field = $date(*/*-1/*)
When you run the job on May 31, 2000, if Suprtool were to use the literal interpretation of $date(*/*-1/*), it would use the date April 31, 2000. In fact, there is no such date; April has only 30 days. Whenever you specify * for the day, and the day is greater than the last day of the month you specified, Suprtool uses the actual last day of the month instead of the current day of the month. In our example,
Suprtool would use April 30, 2000. Suprtool will take leap years into account when calculating the last day of February.
Today's Date
To select records based on today's date, use the following:
>if field=$today {today's date}
>if field=$today(-1) {yesterday's date}
>if field=$today(+1) {tomorrow's date}
Use the Item command to qualify the field as a date. The $today function accepts one optional argument which is the number of days before or after today. The maximum number of days in either direction is 9999.
yymmdd and Beyond 1999
Because dates spanning the turn of the century will not collate properly for the yymmdd form, you need to use $stddate to compare these dates.
>item ship-date,date,yymmdd
>if ship-date < $date(2000/12/31) {will not work}
>if $stddate(ship-date) < $date(2000/12/31) {will work}
Finding Invalid Dates
Use the $invalid function to find invalid dates. An invalid date is a number in a date format whose date equivalent cannot be found on a calendar. For example, a month value of 99 would be considered invalid.
>input sdfile {a self-describing file}
>item deliv-date,date,ccyymmdd
>if $invalid(deliv-date)
>out baddates,link
>xeq
$Stddate Function
The $stddate function converts any date format in nearly any data-type container and internally converts it to the ccyymmdd format in a double integer container.
This allows you to compare dates with dissimilar formats and data-types. For example,
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
>in orddets
>item order-date,date,ccyymmdd
>item bill-date,date,mmddyyyy
>if $stddate(bill-date) <= order-date
>output badords,link
>xeq
This feature is also available for dates that have two-digit years. The century portion of the date will be generated by $stddate, which uses the normal cutoff rules specified by Set Date Cutoff.
>in invdets
>set date cutoff 20
>item invoice-date,date,yymmdd
>item close-date,date,mmddyyyy
>if $stddate(close-date) <= $stddate(invoice-date)
>out badinvs,link
>xeq
In this case all invoice-date values with a yy portion between 20 and 99 will have a
19 for the century. All invoice date values with a yy portion of less than 20 will have
20 for the date generated by the $stddate function.
Invalid Dates
A date must be valid before $stddate can convert it to the ccyymmdd format.
Otherwise, a value of 0 will be returned for any invalid dates. An invalid date is a number in a date format whose date equivalent cannot be found on a calendar. This includes dates selected by the $invalid function. We can eliminate the invalid dates from the above task by changing the If command slightly.
>input sdfile
>set date cutoff 20
>item invoice-date,date,yymmdd
>item close-date,date,mmddyyyy
>if (not $invalid(close-date) &
or not $invalid(invoice-date)) &
and $stddate(close-date) <= $stddate(invoice-date)
>out badinvs,link
>xeq
In this example, if either the close-date or the invoice-date are invalid, then they will not be evaluated by the $stddate function and will not be selected. Although your requirements may be different, you need to remember that invalid dates evaluated by the $stddate function will return a 0 value.
$Days Function
Suprtool supports a $days function, which converts any supported date to a Julian
Day number (the number of days since 4713 BC). This allows for Date arithmetic, in which you can calculate the difference between two dates, even if they have dissimilar formats.
For example you could find all orders that were not shipped within 30 days of being ordered.
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>form ordfile
File: ORDFILE.SALES.MFG (SD Version B.00.00)
Entry: Offset
ORDER-DATE X8 1 <<CCYYMMDD>>
SHIP-DATE X8 9 <<MMDDYYYY>>
ORDER-NUMBER X6 17
Limit: 10000 EOF: 15 Entry Length: 22 Blocking: 16
>in ordfile
>if $days(SHIP-DATE) - $days(ORDER-DATE) >=30
>list
>xeq
Invalid Dates
As with the $stddate function, if a date is not a valid date, then the result of the $days function will be zero. In the example above, if the order has not yet been shipped, then the SHIP-DATE will likely be blank, or zero, or some other special value.
$Days(SHIP-DATE) will be zero, and the resulting calculation will be a negative number.
Notes on Relative Dates
The $date and $today functions always generate a constant from the date, just as if you had typed it. For example, when run on February 13, 2001, the follwing task:
>item field,date,yymmdd
>if field > $today is the same as:
>if field > 010213
Suprtool normally does no date conversion of the actual dates. Dates that do not start with the year do not collate correctly, so Suprtool does not allow relative comparisons with them (<, <=, >, and >=), although you may still compare for strict equality or inequality. The following examples will be rejected by Suprtool:
>item trans_date,date,ddmmyy
>if trans_date >= $date(*/*-1/first) and &
trans_date <= $date(*/*-1/last)
Error: Invalid date format for the comparison
>input myfile,reclen 80, nolf
>define mydate,1,6
>item mydate,date,ddmmyy {e.g., 301100}
>define ....
>if mydate > $date(00/11/01)
Error: Invalid date format for the comparison
>if mydate > $date(01/11/00)
Error: Invalid date: Year = 1 Month = 11 Day = 00
If the date format does not allow the specification of a certain day, such as yymm, ccyymm, yyyymm, aamm, ccyy and mmyyyy, then you do not need to specify the entire date format, although Suprtool will allow either format for $date.
>item trans_month,date,yymm
>item purch_date,date,yymm
>if trans_month <= $date(*/*/*) and &
purch_date >= $date(00/01)
Because dates beyond 1999 in the yymmdd and yymm date types do not collate correctly, relative comparisons are no longer valid. Suprtool produces an error in the following case:
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Using a first pass to generate a Suprtool command dynamically, then using that command in a second pass, is a powerful technique.
>item trans_date,date,yymmdd
>if trans_date >= $date(2001/01/01)
Error: Cannot use a date beyond 1999 for this date format.
You can override this setting by entering the Set Date Ifyy2000error command:
>set date ifyy2000error off
>item trans_date,date,yymmdd
>if trans_date >= $date(2001/01/01)
Century and $Date
Suprtool needs to generate a $date or $today date in the ccyymmdd format. If you specify a two-digit year in the $date function, Suprtool needs to assume a century for the given date:
>item trans-date,date,ccyymmdd
>if trans-date >= $date(01/01/01)
Suprtool assumes 20 for the century if the specified year is less than the Set Date
Cutoff value, and 19 if the specified two-digit year is greater than or equal to this value.
Oracle Dates
Oracle dates contain both the date and the time. The $date and $today functions check the date, but ignore the time.
Date Limits
The $date function in Suprtool can generate dates between the years 1583 and 2583.
Some date formats have limits based on their particular format, such as 2027 for a
Calendar date and 2259 for the aammdd aamm, mmddaa, ddmmaa dates.
Non-Collating Date Types
You can use the $stddate function to convert the non-collating date format to a J2 data item with a date format of ccyymmdd.
For example, to select the purchases by the field purch_date for November 2000 in a ddmmyy X6 field, you would use the $stddate function as follows:
>item purch_date,date,ddmmyy
>if $stddate(purch_date) >= $date(2000/11/first) and &
$stddate(purch_date) <= $date(2000/11/last)
Dynamic Date Selection
You can use the If command for dynamic date selection. Suppose you have a control file that maintains the start and end of a range of dates in which you are interested.
You can use the control file to select records from another file or dataset, based on this date range. This is a two-step process, in which the first Suprtool pass creates the If command with your dates, and the second pass does the actual selection from the dataset.
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool Suprtool Commands
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>input datecntl, reclen 12, nolf {read the one_line control file}
>define start_date,1,6,byte {start date is the first six bytes}
>define end_date,7,6,byte {end date is the next six bytes}
>extract "if sales_date >= '" {assemble the If command}
>extract start_date
>extract "' and sales_date <= '"
>extract end_date
>extract "'"
>output seldate,temp {write the If command to a file}
>xeq
This task produces a usefile that looks like this: if sales_date >= '001101' and sales_date <= '001231'
Now you can use this file named seldate to do the actual selection:
>open oracle demo reader
>select * from sales
>use seldate {use the file that has the If command}
>output sdetail
>exit
Long Expressions
Long If commands can use an ampersand to continue the command over several lines:
>if status = "20" and &
>> state = "AZ", &
>> "CA", &
>> "OR" {no ampersand on the last line}
This is awkward to use and, for internal reasons, the maximum length is restricted to
256 characters. The $read function makes it easier to enter long If commands. Its maximum length is based on the complexity of the expression, not on the number of characters.
$Read Function
The $read function reads the If expression from $stdinx, or from the usefile if the If command is in a usefile. $Read continues to prompt for input lines until you press
Return or enter "//." You must remember to enter all the necessary parts of the If expression, including connectors like AND and OR and commas. You do not use an ampersand (&) to continue from one line to the next when using $read.
>if $read {prompt for the expression}
-status = "20" and {$read prompts with "-"}
-state = "AZ", {the comma is still needed}
- "CA",
- "OR" {no comma on the last line}
- {blank line to terminate $read}
Redoing $Read
When prompting for an expression, $read saves each line in the redo stack and accepts the Before, Do, Listredo, and Redo commands. This provides an easy way to specify all or part of a previous $read expression.
Error: Data Overflow
While the $read function permits long expressions, there are other internal limits within the If command. The first is a limit on the amount of space for constants.
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool must blank-fill all string constants to their full length. The following example overflows the data space:
>define char-256,1,256
>if char-256 = "a","b","c"
Error: Data Overflow
In this example, Suprtool attempted to create three 256-byte constants. There wasn't enough room for the last constant. Solutions to this problem include:
1. If possible, define short fields. If you have long field names, you may want to use the Define command to define shorter subfields.
2. Use tables and $lookup for many values.
3. Split the extract task into multiple passes. On the first pass, use an If expression that results in the fewest possible number of output records.
Use the output file from the first pass as input to the second. Apply the remainder of your If expression during the second pass.
Error: Code Overflow
Suprtool translates If commands to an internal machine representation. There is a limit on the size of this code. When an error occurs, there is little you can do except use tables and $lookup wherever possible, and when this fails use multiple passes.
$Read in Usefiles
When you specify $read in a usefile, Suprtool expects the If expression to appear in the usefile. This provides a method for storing and executing complicated If commands.
You can also manipulate Suprtool into prompting for portions of an If command.
When the If command with $read is the last command in a usefile, Suprtool satisfies the $read from $stdinx. The $read function can appear anywhere in which a space can appear, so you can use this to prompt the user for values.
>use prompt.use
>in sdfile {first line of usefile}
>if status=$read and & {continue the If command}
state = $read {last line of the usefile}
-"10" {prompt for status}
-// {end of prompt for status}
-"AZ", {prompt for state}
-"CA", {user must remember comma}
-"OR" {user also enters quotes}
-// {end of the second read}
Notes
Suprtool is not designed to be used by end users. We prefer that you write intelligent front-ends that understand user applications and hide the details of Suprtool from end users. We recommend that you use $read from usefiles only for one-time tasks, or for tasks used by experienced Suprtool users who do not require a friendly user interface.
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Input Command [I]
Opens the file that will be the input source for the next extract task. The file must contain fixed-length records with or without a line feed separator. If you are selecting records, the selection parameters must appear after any Reclen, LF, or
NOLF parameters. The record length is the length of the data portion of each record, not including the line feed. If you specify LF, Suprtool/UX includes the line feed as part of the data by increasing the record length by one character.
If you have an input file with 80-byte records, and each record is separated with a line feed, you would use:
>input uxfile,reclen 80,lf
>list char
>xeq
Since Uxfile has line feeds, the List command shows a dot (.) as the 81st character of each record. This dot corresponds to the line feed character. To read every fifth record in Uxfile, you would use:
>input uxfile,reclen 80,lf, (#5)
>list char
>xeq
To examine a file which has no line feeds between records (e.g., the Suprtool object code), you would use:
>input /opt/robelle/bin/suprtool,rec 256,nolf
>num 10
>list hex,char
>xeq
Suprtool executes the Input command immediately – it does not wait for an Xeq command before opening the Input file.
[(startrecord/[endrecord])]
[(#count)]
INPUT file [,RECLEN length ] [, LF | NOLF ]
[(startrecord/[endrecord])]
[(#count)]
(Default: all input records)
Input File
The first example shows the most common use of the Input command. An input file is specified as the input source to Suprtool. We select a subset of the input data with the If command. Before using the If command, we must define a field within the input record:
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>input invent, r 80, nolf {input is from a disc file}
>define a,11,2,int {"A" is an integer that starts…}
>output outfile { at the 11th byte of Invent}
>if a<10000 {records with field "A" less than…}
>xeq { 10000 are written to Outfile}
Selection by Record Number
The (startrecord/endrecord) parameter specifies a range of input records by record number. The default value for endrecord is the highest record in the file. The first record number is 0 for disc files.
The (startrecord/endrecord) parameter must come after the reclen and LF/NOLF parameters, if it is present. You can check your record selections with the Verify command.
When debugging software, it is convenient to scan the first few records of a file. The
startrecord/endrecord parameter makes it easy to scan these records:
>input invent,r 80,nolf, (0/19) {first twenty records}
>list {produce a list of each record}
>xeq { in "OCTAL,CHAR" format}
Random Selection
The (#count) parameter specifies that every "nth" record in the input file should be selected. This option is designed for random sampling of the input file. The
(startrecord/endrecord) parameter cannot be used with this parameter. Like
(startrecord/endrecord), (#count) must come after the =setname, if present.
Test files can be constructed from random samplings of production files. We can build a test file with the #count parameter:
>input dinvent(#15) {every 15th record is read}
>output dtest {create an output file with every}
>xeq { 15th record from Dinvent}
Notes
Only one Input, Chain, Get, or Select command is allowed per extract task. The
Input command opens the specified file immediately. The file is held open until the input is reset or the current task completes.
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Item Command [IT]
Use the Item command to specify the number of implied decimal points or the date format for an item. The $date and $today functions of the If command work only with dates. The Item command must precede any If or Extract commands.
ITEM itemname,DATE | DECIMAL,attribute
Itemname
The itemname must be an Eloquence itemname, a Defined field, an SD (selfdescribing) field, or a column name. If the itemname exists both as an Eloquence itemname and as a Defined field, the attribute is associated with the Eloquence itemname and the Defined field is deleted. If the itemname exists both as an
Eloquence itemname and as an SD field, the attribute is only associated with the
Eloquence itemname and a warning is produced. The itemname cannot be qualified with a subscript.
Date Formats
For dates, the attribute must be one of the following:
Attribute Attribute
ASK ccyymm
Calendar ccyy ddmmyy aammdd ddmmyyyy aamm mmddyy mmddaa mmddyyyy ddmmaa
Oracle SRNChronos
PHdate mmyyyy yymm yyddd yymmdd ccyyddd yyyymm HPCalendar yyymmdd JulianDay yyyymmdd EDSDate ccyymmdd PHDate8
Abbreviations
When specifying the Date keyword, you can use a leading subset for the date attribute. For example, if you want to specify the Calendar date type, you can specify only CA.
>item cal-date,date,ca
If you do not like this feature, you can turn it off by specifying the following command in your Suprmgr file:
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>set itemabbreviatedate off
Data-Types for Dates
Each date attribute is compatible with certain data-types. For more information, see the table on data-types in the Define command. The following table shows the compatibilities:
ASK
Calendar ddmmyy ddmmyyyy
J1 and K1
J1 and K1
X6, Z6, J2, K2, and P8 or greater
X8, Z8, J2, K2, and P10 or greater mmddyy mmddyyyy
X6, Z6, J2, K2, and P8 or greater
X8, Z8, J2, K2, and P10 or greater
Oracle X7
PHdate J1, K1, J2, and K2 yymm yymmdd
X4, Z4, J1, and K1
X6, Z6, J2, K2, and P8 or greater yyyymmdd ccyymmdd ccyymm
X8, Z8, J2, K2, and P10 or greater
X8, Z8, J2, K2, and P10 or greater
X6, Z6, J2, K2, and P8 or greater yyyymm X6, Z6, J2, K2, and P8 or greater aammdd X6 aamm X4 mmddaa X6 ddmmaa X6 ccyy X4, Z4, J1, and K1
SRNChronos X6 mmyyyy yyddd ccyyddd
X6, Z6, J2, K2, and P8 or greater
X5, Z5, J2, K2, and P8 or greater
X7, Z7, J2, K2, and P10 or greater
JulianDay J2
PHdate8 J1, K1, J2, and K2
Date Limits
The $date function in Suprtool can generate dates between the years 1583 and 2583.
Some date formats have limits based on their particular format, such as 2027 for a
Calendar date and 2259 for the aammdd aamm, mmddaa, ddmmaa dates.
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Calendar
The Calendar attribute is provided for users who have fields containing the 16-bit
MPE Calendar date format as an unsigned, logical value with seven bits for the year of the century (bits 0-6), followed by nine bits for the day of the year (bits 7-15). The
Calendar date format only supports dates up to the end of the year 2027.
PHdate and PHdate8
The PHdate and PHdate8 attributes are compatible with the COGNOS PowerHouse date format. If the data-type is J1 or K1, the date is stored as a LOGICAL value with seven bits for the year of the century (bits 0-6), four bits for the month (bits 7-10), and five bits for the day (bits 11-15). If the data-type is J2 or K2, the date is stored as yyyymmdd.
PHDate and PHDate8 date formats are similar, however PHDate values for the year range from 0 - 99, whereas PHDate8 year values are from 0 - 127. A year of 0 in
PHDate could mean either 1900 or 2000 depending on user applications. A year of 0 in PHDate8 means 1900, and 100 means 2000. The PHDate8 date format is found in
PowerHouse version 8.19 and higher.
ASK
The ASK attribute is compatible with the ASK manufacturing software. ASK uses a special date format stored as a single integer or a single logical (i.e., J1 or K1 in
IMAGE). This date is relative to January 1, 1973.
yyymmdd
The yyymmdd attribute is similar to yymmdd, except that the first digit denotes the century. If the first digit is a 1 (one) then the century is 19, and if the first digit is a 2
(two) then the century is 20. Only data-types of P8 and J2 are supported for this date
attribute.
This date format is used by some third-party software packages such as MACS and
APS.
EDSDATE
The EDSDATE date format is similar to the yyymmdd format, in which the first digit represents the century. The first digit in the EDSDATE is either 0 or 1: a 0 represents a century of 19 and a 1 represents a century of 20.
JulianDay
The JulianDay number is the absolute count of the days that have elapsed since
January 1, 4713 BC on the Julian calendar.
Typically "Julian Day numbers" refer to an integer number corresponding to whole days, while the "Julian Date" may mean an integer plus a decimal value that resolves the Julian count to precise parts of a day. Suprtool supports the "JulianDay" number and does not attempt to support an hour or point in the day.
aammdd and Related Date Formats
The aammdd attribute is similar to yymmdd, except the aa portion of the date uses a combination of letters and numbers in order to represent dates beyond 1999.
The aammdd date format was developed by James Overman of HP for use in their
MM3000 product. This format is available only for X6 data-type.
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By substituting a letter of the alphabet in the first position of the year, we can extend a six-digit date and also ensure that the dates collate correctly. For example:
YY of AAMMDD CCYY
00 - 09
90 - 99
A0 - A9
B0 - B9
C0 - C9
1900 - 1909
1990 - 1999
2000 - 2009
2010 - 2019
2020 - 2029
Because letters are greater than numbers in the collating sequence you can ensure that aammdd dates beyond 1999 will order correctly.
Suprtool also supports other date formats with this two-character year representation.
These formats are aamm, mmddaa and ddmmaa.
Oracle
Oracle dates include both the date and the time. The $date and $today functions only apply to the date part of Oracle dates.
SRN Chronos
The Srnchronos date format is used in applications from Software Research
Northwest. Like Oracle dates, this format includes the date and time, but the time portion is ignored by the $date and $today functions.
DDD Dates
Dates consisting of ddd in the format name use the ddd to represent the nth day in the current year. This means that January 1 will be day 001, and Dec 31 will be day 365 on non-leap years. Some people refer to these type of dates as Julian dates.
HPCalendar
The HPCalendar date format is supported by HP's new HPCalendar intrinsic and consists of a 32-bit integer number, whereby the first 23 bits represent the year and the last nine bits represent the day of the year.
Decimal Places
The decimal attribute is the number of implied decimal places in an item. The minimum number of implied decimal places is 0. The maximum is based on the datatype of the item:
Data-Type Maximum Implied Decimal Places
I1 5
I2 10
I3 15
I4 19
K1 5
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K2 10
Pn n-1
Zn n
You cannot specify implied decimal places for byte-, char-, or IEEE-type items.
Once you define a decimal place, almost every command in Suprtool is affected.
Suprtool accepts numeric values with decimal points or scales integers according to the number of implied decimal places (e.g., specify two implied decimal places, then enter 1,000 to represent 1,000.00). All formatting commands format fields with a decimal point when appropriate.
Constant Values
When specifying numeric constants for a field with implied decimal places, there are different formats that you can use. For example, assume that we use the Item command to specify two implied decimal places for an amount field. The following are examples of constant values for this item:
Constant Interpretation
0 zero value padded as necessary
1 $1.00
0.01 $0.01
.01 also acceptable for $0.01
Notes
SQL Columns
You must redefine any SQL columns before you can use the Item command.
>sel * from emp
>def salary,sal
>item salary,decimal,3 {correct scale}
>if salary > 15.275
Compound Items
When you specify a compound item, the attribute applies to all elements of the compound item.
>item monthly_totals,decimal,2 {12 occurrences}
>if monthly_totals(5) > 1000.00
You cannot apply an attribute to only one sub-item of a compound item:
>item monthly_totals(5),decimal,2
Error: Missing attribute for the Item Command
When to Specify the Item Command
The Item command affects almost all other Suprtool commands. It should be used as follows:
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
• For databases, specify it immediately after the Select command, but before any Extract or If commands.
• For disc files, it is best to specify the Define and Item commands immediately after the Input command.
Usefiles
You can use a usefile as a mini data dictionary for Suprtool. For databases, it is a good idea to put all the Item commands associated with a database into a usefile.
After the Base command has been specified, the usefile can describe the items in the database to Suprtool. For disc files, you can put both the Define and Item commands in a usefile and execute them right after specifying the file with the Input command.
If you use the Link output option, both date formats and implied decimal places are saved in the self-describing file so they never need to be specified again. base store use store.usefile
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Key Command [K]
Specifies the next sort field for an extract task, using an explicit byte position in the record, not a field name. See the Sort command for specifying sort fields by table column name or Defined field, or by field name in an SD file. Up to 20 Sort and Key commands may be specified per extract task; the first is the major sort field.
[KEY] byteposition,bytelen [,type] [,DESC]
(Default: type=BYTE, ASCENDING order).
Parameters
Desc specifies that the field is to be sorted in Descending order.
The byteposition is a number between 1 and the length of the input records, specifying where the sort field begins. The bytelen parameter is a number from 1 to the length of the record, specifying how long the sort field is.
The type is a word that gives the desired data-type of the field for sorting purposes:
Type Description
BYTE (unsigned, straight compare)
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PACKED (packed-decimal)
PACKED* (packed-decimal, last nibble unused)
DISPLAY (zoned-decimal numeric field)
LOGICAL (unsigned, like BYTE, 2 characters)
CHARACTER (for Native Language Support)
The Key command also accepts FPOINT as the data-type for IEEE numbers.
Examples
The first example sorts an integer (PIC S9(4) COMP) field which starts on the 11th byte of the input record. We sort the entire input file based on one key:
>input bigfile,r 40,lf {input from a disc file}
>key 11,2,int {key is an integer that starts}
>output outfile { at the 11th byte of Bigfile}
>xeq {create Outfile and prompt for}
{ more Suprtool commands}
>input discfile,r 40,lf {another input file}
>key 14,4,double,desc {double integer (PIC S9(9) COMP)}
>output ofile2 {sort input in descending order}
>exit
The following examples show the various data-types and combinations that are available with the Key command:
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
>key 1,10 {byte data-type}
>key 1,10,desc {descending sort sequence}
>key 11,4,double {I2 or J2, S9(9) COMP}
>key 1,6;11,4,ieee {X6 string and an E2 field at byte 11}
>key 21,6,packed {P12, S9(11) COMP-3}
>key 21,6,packed* {P12, S9(10) COMP-3, wasted byte}
Notes
The command name, Key, is optional. Any command that starts with a numeric character is assumed to be a Key command. The Verify command shows all of the current key fields, and the Reset command cancels them. If no sort fields are defined prior to the Xeq or Exit command, Suprtool performs a copy, not a sort.
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Link Command [LIN]
You cannot use Suprtool's Link command to invoke Suprlink/UX, but you can run
Suprlink/UX by itself.
/opt/robelle/bin/suprlink
Suprlink/UX/Copyright Robelle Solutions Technology Inc. 1988-2001
(Version 4.5)
+
Suprlink/UX provides high-speed data file linking based on a sort key. Suprlink/UX only accepts self-describing files created by Suprtool/UX or the MPE SDUnix program.
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List Command [L]
The List command is used to produce formatted listings of the selected records. You may specify the List command, or the Output command, or both, or neither. If List is used instead of Output, Suprtool sets the Output to $null, so that only a listing is produced.
LIST [ OCTAL|HEX|DECIMAL ] [ CHAR ] [ NOREC ] [ LABELS ]
[ RECORD ] [ DUPLEX ] [ ONEPERLINE ] [ LP ]
[ NONAME ] [ NOSKIP ] [ STANDARD ] [ DEVICE name ]
[ DATE format ] [ TIME format ] [ PCL format ]
[ LEFTJUSTNUM ] [ RIGHTJUSTNUM ]
[ TITLE "string" ] [ HEADING "string" ["string" ...]]
LIST [ OCTAL|HEX|DECIMAL ] [ CHAR ] [ NOREC ]
[ LABELS ] [ DEVICE name ]
[ RECORD ] [ DUPLEX ] [ ONEPERLINE ] [ LP ]
[ NONAME ] [ NOSKIP ] [ STANDARD ]
[ DATE format ] [ TIME format ] [ PCL format ]
[ LEFTJUSTNUM ] [ RIGHTJUSTNUM ]
[ TITLE "string" ]
[ HEADING "string" ["string" ...]]
(Default: Octal/Char or "Formatted")
If Suprtool knows about the fields in the input source (e.g., because you have used the Extract command), the list records are formatted with field names, and internal binary data-types (e.g., integer) are converted to ASCII. You cannot combine the
Ask or Query,Num output-options with the List command.
Here is a typical use of List: to find any entries in the Customer table that do not have a valid value for "status".
>open oracle demo reader {input from a database}
>select * from customer {read this table}
>if status<>10,20,30,40 {the only valid values}
>list {print bad entries}
>xeq
Format
You can override the defaults with a specification in the List command (e.g., List
Hex,Char). If the input source is not self-describing and no Extract command is specified, the default output format is Octal,Char, which also shows both input and output record numbers.
Decimal Places
The List command formats numbers using the implied number of decimal places. For example, the following Suprtool commands format the unit cost with two decimal
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4
5
6
1
2
3 points. We specify the Rightjustnum keyword, because numbers with decimal points are hard to read if they are left justified:
>item cost,decimal,2 {two implied decimal points}
>list rightjustnum {numbers right justified}
>xeq { with decimal points}
Listing Record Numbers
The Norec keyword prevents the printing of the input and output record numbers.
The input record numbers are not printed if Output xxx,Data is used and the file is sorted.
Listing One Field per Line
Suprtool normally attempts to list more than one field on every line of list output.
The Oneperline keyword causes every field to be shown on a different line.
Listing without Field Names (Noname)
When Suprtool knows the record structure of the output file, it shows the name of each output field. The Noname keyword causes the field names to be suppressed.
By only extracting a few fields, it is possible to fit the listed output for each record on one line.
Suppressing Blank Lines Between Records
By default, Suprtool prints a blank line between each record. The Noskip keyword removes this blank line. If you combine the Noskip, Norec, Noname, and Title options when extracting a few fields, Suprtool can produce a simple report.
Numeric Justification (Leftjustnum and Rightjustnum)
The List command normally left justifies all numeric fields. Specifying List Standard causes all numeric fields to be right-justified, unless you override the default with the
Leftjustnum keyword.
Use the Leftjustnum or Rightjustnum keyword to specify the alignment of the numbers. The two keywords are mutually exclusive. The last one that appears on the command line is the one that is applied.
LaserJet Listings
There are two methods to select different printing options for a LaserJet and other
PCL-compatible printers. You can permanently set the PCL option for all listings by using Set List PCL, or you can use the List command to select the PCL option for just one task. PCL stands for Printer Command Language, which is an HP standard for printers. The following is a summary of the PCL values:
Lineprinter landscape
Courier landscape
Courier "standard" portrait
Lineprinter
Courier A4 "tight"
Lineprinter legal portrait portrait landscape
175 cols/60 lines
100 cols/45 lines
80 cols/60 lines
132 cols/80 lines
80 cols/60 lines
223 cols/60 lines
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
See the Set command for a complete description of the PCL options. By default,
Suprtool assumes that the List output device is not PCL-compatible (List PCL 0).
If you use the List command to your terminal with a global Set List PCL value other than zero, your terminal screen may be cleared. To avoid this situation, you can explicitly specify the PCL setting along with the device:
>get d-sales
>list serialp,pcl 2
>xeq
A4-Size Paper
Most of the PCL options, with the exception of PCL 5, were designed and tested with North American letter-size paper. This is especially true with PCL 5 for A4 paper: it reduces the horizontal spacing between characters so that 80 columns of
Courier output fits on a single line. In addition, if you add 2000 to a PCL code,
Suprtool adjusts the number of rows and columns for that option to match A4 paper.
For example, to print Landscape on A4 paper, use PCL 2001 instead of PCL 1.
In general, selecting A4 paper gives you more space along the long side of the paper and less space along the short side. If you are happy with the way letter-size rows and columns work on A4 paper, simply do not add 2000 to the PCL code.
Roman-8 vs. ASCII
The PCL option requests a Roman-8 character set, but some combination font cartridges only supply the ASCII character set (half as many characters means twice as many fonts in a single cartridge). If you ask for Landscape Lineprinter and get
Landscape Courier instead, your Lineprinter font probably has the ASCII character set instead of the Roman-8 character set. To request an ASCII font, add 1000 to the
PCL code. For example, if you have a Super Cartridge (55 fonts in one!), use PCL
1001, 1004, and 1006. To select both ASCII and A4 paper, add 3000.
Double-Sided Printing on LaserJets
The LaserJet IID and IIID can print on both sides of the paper. The Duplex keyword enables double-sided printing on these printers.
>list duplex
Headings in Listings
Specifying a Title in the List command forces Suprtool to produce a formatted listing with page-headings, page-numbers, today's date and the current time. If you want just the date and page numbers, use an empty string. For example,
>list title " "
The following example prints a report on a LaserJet in Landscape (sideways) mode, using the tiny Lineprinter font, including a page heading with the title. The physical command line limit is 256 characters. As a result, the maximum size of the heading is less than 256 characters because the List command and heading options need to be included in the command line.
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>in custs {self-describing file}
>if status<>10,20,30,40 {the only valid values}
>set list pcl 1 {select LaserJet option}
>list title "Invalid CUSTOMER Records"
>xeq {include title on listing}
Changing the Date Format
When you select page headings by specifying a title, each page includes today's date.
By default, this date is formatted as mmm dd, ccyy (e.g., Mar 20, 2000). You can override this format with the Date keyword. Use the Set command to specify a different default date format for future List commands (e.g., Set List Date 2). The valid date formats are as follows:
0 (default) mmm dd, ccyy Mar 20, 2000
4 dd mmmyy 20 Mar00
>list title "Example Report" date 3
>xeq {heading date is in dd/mm/yy format}
Changing the Time Format
When you select page headings by specifying a title, each page includes the current time. By default, the time is in 24-hour format (e.g., 23:02). You can override this format with the Time keyword. Use the Set command to specify a different default time format for future List commands (e.g., Set List Time 2). The valid time formats are as follows:
0 none
1 (default) 24-hour 23:02
>list title "Example Report" time 2
>xeq {time will be in AM/PM format}
Simple Reports
A Fast Method for Producing Simple Reports
For self-describing files, datasets, and database tables, the Standard keyword is equivalent to List Noname,Noskip,Norec,Rightjustnum with default column headings. For data files, the Standard keyword is equivalent to List Octal,Char. In either case, the Standard keyword provides a default title that describes the input source. You can override the title, date format, time format, or any other option
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
selected by the Standard keyword, by specifying them in addition to the Standard keyword. For example,
>select * from customer
>list standard {use all Suprtool defaults}
>xeq
>select * from customer
>list standard,date 3 {override the date format}
>xeq
>input uxfile,reclen 80,nolf
>list standard,char {override the format options}
>xeq
>input uxfile,reclen 80,nolf
>list standard,leftjustnum {left justify numbers}
>xeq
>get m-customer
>list standard,title "Customer List" {override title}
>xeq
>get m-customer
>list standard,heading " " {no column headings}
>xeq
Listings with Subheadings
When using the Title or Standard keywords, you can also include subheadings with the Heading keyword. You can specify multiple columns by repeating the string after the Heading option (e.g., List Heading "First " "Second") or specify the
Heading option multiple times (e.g., List Heading "First ", Heading "Second"). Being able to specify multiple columns makes it easier to align column headings when using the Standard keyword. If you specify the Heading keyword without the Title keyword, a default title is produced.
>select * from customer {read this table}
>extract account {Z8 }
>extract firstname {X10}
>extract lastname {X16}
>extract rating {J2 }
>extract status {X2 }
>sort lastname
>sort firstname
>list standard,title "Customer List", &
heading "Account " " First and Last Names" &
" " "Credit " "Status"
>xeq
List Device
By default, the List command lists lines to $stdlist. There are several methods that you can use to redirect the output to a specific logical device or to a disc file. You can also redirect output to an attached printer.
Device LP
Use the LP option to send listings to the lp command. The LP option assumes the list device is 80 columns wide.
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>list lp
User Specified Device
Use the Device option to specify a specific logical device for the listing. The device name must appear after the Device option. The device name is case-sensitive so that the device "SHIPPING" is different than the device "shipping". The Device option assumes that the list device is 80 columns wide.
>list device LP {same as List LP}
>list device serialp {send to device serialp}
Listing to Attached Printer
If you wish to list to a printer that is attached to your terminal, use List Record.
Suprtool uses Record mode on your terminal or PC to print on the attached printer.
To use this option, you must be using an HP terminal or HP terminal emulator and your data communication settings must be setup correctly.
You can combine this option with other listing options. You cannot interrupt Record mode with Control-Y, but you can do a Soft Reset. This unlocks the keyboard and causes the rest of the output to appear on the screen. You can then stop it with
Control-Y. List record may not return complete control to your PC when running
Reflection. The report printed and the keyboard unlocks, but control is not passed to your terminal. You can get control back by doing a Soft Reset (Alt-S). You can prevent this problem by setting DISABLE-COMP-CODES to yes.
If you are listing to an attached printer from a terminal, your terminal may remain locked after the printout is completed. This generally happens when you have handshaking enabled. (G-H straps set to No). You can do a soft reset to unlock your terminal.
If handshaking is disabled (G-H straps set to Yes), the List command works and returns control to the terminal but two "S" characters will be printed on the terminal.
There is currently no known workaround to these problems.
Notes
The List operation occurs logically after the sort phase, if any, and after any Extract, but before the final Output or Put operation. A Reset turns off the current List options.
For more examples of the List command, see Suprtool Issues and Solutions.
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Listredo Command [LISTREDO]
The Listredo command displays any of the previous 1000 commands.
[ string ] [;REL]
[ ALL | @ ] [;UNN]
LISTREDO [ start [ / stop ] ] [;ABS] [;OUT=file]
[ string ] [;REL]
[ ALL | @ ] [;UNN]
(Default: display previous 20 commands)
(BJ and ,, are short for LISTREDO)
Commands are numbered sequentially from 1 as entered and the last 1000 are retained. You can display a single command, a range of commands, all 1000, or all the commands whose name matches the string. You can display the commands with
ABSolute line numbers (the default), RELative line numbers (-5/-4), or
UNNumbered. If you want to redo any of these commands, see Do, Redo, and
Before.
Examples
>listredo 5
>listredo 5/10
>listredo help {print all Help commands}
>listredo -10 {print last ten commands}
>listredo ALL {print entire redo stack}
>listredo rm {print all rm commands}
>listredo rm xx {print all "rm xx" commands}
>listredo @rm {print all with "rm" anywhere}
>listredo @;rel {print ALL, relative numbers}
Saving to a File
Saving the Listredo commands to a file is not supported in Suprtool/UX.
Notes
The :Listredo command can be abbreviated to BJ as in Qedit, or to ,, (comma comma) as in MPEX. You cannot use a semi-colon (;) to combine commands on the same line.
Persistent Redo
Redo commands can be saved in a permanent file and can therefore be used from another session. You can use the Set redo command to specify a filename to save
your redo commands. Please see the Set Redo command ("Redo" on page 166) for
details.
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Numrecs Command [N]
Limits the number of records selected and the size of the sort scratch file.
NUMRECS size | percentage%
(default: size=10,000 or EOF of input source)
Parameters
To limit the number of records selected from the input source and to reduce the size of the sort scratch file, use the Numrecs command. If you select more than |2size| entries, Suprtool prints a warning message, and ignores the rest of the input records.
However, the output file will have the records that were selected. Use a percent sign
(%) to specify the Numrecs as a percentage of the input file size. The percentage can range from 1 to 500, but values over 100 have no effect on HP-UX.
Reducing File Sizes
Suppose that the d-sales dataset contains 100,000 entries, but you use the If command to select 15% of the entries. We would specify 15 as the percentage on the
Numrecs command to reduce the size of the sort scratch file and the output file:
>get d-sales {specify input}
>numrecs 15% {specify 15000 as file size}
>if sales-qty<100 {select a subset of d-sales}
>sort cust-account {sort using the dataset path}
>output out2 {output file will have room for}
>xeq { 15000 records}
Disc Files vs. Datasets
When you specify a source of records using the Input command (as opposed to reading a dataset using the Get or Chain command), Suprtool attempts to duplicate all of the input file's attributes in the output file. This includes the file limit. For this reason, the Numrecs value is ignored if the output file limit is smaller than the input file limit. Numrecs is still useful when reading disc files to reduce the size of the sort scratch file.
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Open Command [OP]
Specify an SQL database to open. Only one database can be open at a time.
OPEN ORACLE username [password]
OPEN ALLBASE dbename owner
Oracle Database
Use the Open command to connect to an Oracle database. You must specify your
Oracle username and password. If you do not specify the password in the Open command, Suprtool prompts for your password (without echoing it on the screen).
To read data from an Oracle table or view, use the Select command. Use Set Oracle
Rows to specify how many rows for Suprtool to fetch when it is reading Oracle data.
>open oracle scott tiger
Allbase Database
Use the Open command to connect to an Allbase database. You must specify your
Allbase dbename and owner. To read data from an Allbase table or view, use the
Select command. Use Set Allbase Rows to specify how many rows for Suprtool to fetch when it is reading Allbase data.
>open allbase inventory anne
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Output Command [O]
Define the name of the output file as one of these: a new disc file (default), an existing file (Append or Erase option), or * for $stdlist. If you use List, Put, Update or Total, Output defaults to $null. Output produces the same record format as the input source (adjusted by Extract commands), unless you override it with format keywords.
OUTPUT filename format [ERASE | APPEND]
(Default: DATA only, "new" file)
New Files
The filename is the name of a new disc file to be built by Suprtool (Output xxx). If
Suprtool cannot Save the new file because of a duplicate file name, you may purge the old file or give the new file a different name. If Suprtool is running in batch mode, it renames the new file as Outputnn, where nn is the lowest number between
00 and 20 that makes a valid new file name. The Outputnn file is built in the same directory as the duplicate output file and not in your current directory.
Existing Files
The filename is the name of an old disc file to erase (Output xxx,erase) or to append to (Output xxx,append). Output xxx,erase does not purge the existing file; it simply overwrites the contents of the file.
$Stdlist
Specify output to $stdlist by a single asterisk (Output *). Use this filename with the
ASCII option for a quick listing of a file or database table.
Format Options
The format and length of the output records is determined by which of the following
format keywords is selected:
Keyword(s) Format
DATA Default
KEY
NUM
Sort keys only
J2 record numbers only
NUM,KEY
NUM,DATA
J2 record numbers plus sort keys
J2 record numbers plus data record
LINK
NUM,QUERY
ASK
ASCII
DISPLAY
PRN
New format self-describing file
Query "numbers" format
COGELOG ASK select file
Convert numeric to ASCII
Convert numeric to display (zoned-decimal)
Personal computer format
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NOLF
LF
DATA
Do not write out Line Feeds to the end of the record
Write out Line Feeds to the end of the record
DATA is the default; output records are the same length and format as the input records.
KEY
KEY creates output records containing only the sort keys, concatenated from left to right (major key to minor key).
NUM
NUM creates output records of four bytes in length, containing the double-integer record number of each input record. The record number of the first record is 1 for database tables and 0 for disc files.
NUM,KEY
NUM,KEY creates output records containing the four-byte record number, followed by the sort key values, concatenated from left to right (major key to minor key).
NUM,DATA
NUM,DATA creates output records containing the four-byte record number, followed by the full data record. This can be useful to create "transaction" files from detail datasets that will later be updated back to the database after a processing stage.
QUERY
QUERY creates a self-describing output file. A self-describing file is a data file plus an extra file which contains information about the structure of each record in the data file. This extra file is created with the output file name plus the extension ".sd". This
".sd" file contains the name, type, length, and offset of each field in the data file.
QUERY self-describing files have no provision for repeated fields. These fields appear with an "unknown" type in the .sd file. See the LINK option for a better selfdescribing file format. The QUERY option produces a file that is similar to the file produced by the SAVE command in the MPE QUERY program.
LINK
The QUERY output option has some major drawbacks. Compound fields are not handled, date and decimal point information is not saved, and sort information is not part of the file description. The LINK option produces a self-describing file that solves all these problems. This option is the recommended way to generate files for
Suprlink. We are also encouraging third-party software vendors to accept this format.
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To convert a self-describing file back into a non-SD file, simply purge the corresponding ".sd" file.
NUM,QUERY
NUM,QUERY creates output records in QUERY "numbers" format. This is an undocumented feature of QUERY that is used by some application packages.
Records in a "numbers" file contain the dataset number and the record number in
ASCII format. A QUERY "numbers" file is usually used as input to a report program. Substituting Suprtool for QUERY in these batch jobs should improve the speed.
ASK
ASK is a QUERY-replacement tool from COGELOG. ASK creates output records in
ASK select-file format. Suprtool can be used to scan and select records quickly from a dataset. ASK Version C can produce reports from the resulting select-file. This option cannot be used with any other Output option.
Recent versions of ASK read self-describing files. For these versions use the Link option instead of the Ask option.
ASCII
ASCII converts all binary input fields into their equivalent ASCII values. All binary fields are right-justified in their fields with a trailing sign. The sign can be a blank,
"+", or "-". Byte fields are not affected by this option. The size of the ASCII field depends on the format of the binary field:
Field Format Output Size
I1, J1
I2, J2
I3, J3
I4, J4
6 bytes
11 bytes
16 bytes
20 bytes
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Zn n+1 bytes
Any fields with implied decimal places (see the Item command) are formatted with a decimal point in the correct position. Suprtool reserves two additional positions for each output field that has an implied decimal point.
DISPLAY
DISPLAY converts all binary input fields into their equivalent display values (also known as zoned-decimal). The size of the display field depends on the format of the binary field:
Field Format Output Size
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
I1, J1
I2, J2
I3, J3
I4, J4
5 bytes
10 bytes
15 bytes
19 bytes
Pn n-1 bytes
P*n n-2 bytes
The last digit of the number is replaced with a letter corresponding to positive or negative values. See the following table.
Units Digit Positive Negative No Sign
0 { } 0
1 A J 1
2 B K 2
3 C L 3
4 D M 4
5 E N 5
6 F O 6
7 G P 7
8 H Q 8
9 I R 9
Positive values for I- and J-type fields are converted into neutral (i.e., no sign) display values. The sign is preserved when converting packed fields to display.
DISPLAY is not supported for Real or IEEE fields. Byte fields are not affected by this option. Display fields in the input record are not converted into display.
PRN
Many PC software packages import PRN files (these files are also called delimited in some PC documentation). A PRN file has quotes around character-fields and a comma between each field. Binary values are output in ASCII with an optional leading sign. Not all applications accept PRN files; for more precise conversion of data, use STExport.
PRN converts each input-field to a fixed-width output-field, filling with trailing spaces where necessary. All binary values are converted into their equivalent ASCII value, left-justified in their fields. The sign precedes the ASCII value for the number and can be missing, "+", or "-". See the ASCII output-option for the field width of each data-type.
Output fields with implied decimal places (see "Decimal Places" on page 125) are
formatted with a decimal point in the correct position. Like the ASCII option,
Suprtool reserves two extra columns for each output field with implied decimal places.
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• Suprtool Commands
Lotus 1-2-3 accepts records only up to 240 bytes long. Because the PRN option leaves room for the maximum value of any field, you may need to restrict the number of output fields using the Extract command.
While some PC software allows alternate characters to be used to delimit character fields, Lotus 1-2-3 accepts double quotes only. Since Lotus 1-2-3 rejects character fields that contains a double quote, Suprtool removes all double quotes from character fields when generating the PRN format. Suprtool removes quotes by replacing them with a space.
See STExport for a method of including header lines in the file to be down-loaded.
NOLF
If you need to ensure that line feeds are not written to the end of each record, then you should specify the NOLF option. It is usually preferable to specify the LF option.
LF
If you need to ensure that line feeds are written to the end of each record, then you should specify the LF option. When extracting from SQL databases, Suprtool writes out records without line feeds. Files with line feeds are usually processed more easily by most other applications or import programs, so it is advisable to use the LF option if you are uncertain.
By default, whether Suprtool writes out a line feed depends on the input source. For example, if the input source has line feeds, then line feeds will be written out at the end of each record.
When filling up PowerHouse subfiles, some versions of Quiz will abort if no line feeds are found at the end of the record. It is recommended that when you write to a
PowerHouse subfile, you should always use the LF option on the Output command.
Examples
One reason to use $stdlist as the output file is to obtain a quick listing of the ASCII fields in the input source. The following example lists the Account, Lastname, and
Firstname columns of the Customer table and separates them by two spaces:
>open ora demo reader {input from a database}
>select * from customer {use the Customer table}
>extract account {account number will be first}
>extract " " {two spaces}
>extract lastname {the customer's last name}
>extract " " {two more spaces}
>extract firstname {the customer's first name}
>output * {output the records to $stdlist}
>sort account {sorted by the account number}
>exit
The following examples demonstrate other combinations of options on the Output command. The entire Issues chapter of the manual should be reviewed for extended examples using the Output command. Many Output options were intended for specific application areas.
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
>output newfile
>output accum,append
>output keyfile,key
>output transf,num,data
>output querynum,num,query
>output $null
If you want to find out how many records are qualified by some selection criteria, without producing an output file, send the output to $null. The Out= count on $stdlist displays the number of qualifying records.
Notes
The output file must be an "old", existing file if the Append or Erase option has been specified.
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Put Command [P]
Directs output records to be DBPUT into an Eloquence dataset. Put can be combined with Output to a file, but if no Output command is entered, Suprtool defaults the output file to $null. It is your responsibility to ensure that the output records match the format of the target dataset. The DATA option of the Output command is the only valid output option when Put is specified.
PUT setname [,database]
(Default: database=Base)
Parameters
If database is not specified, setname must be a valid dataset of the Base previously opened. You must have write access to the dataset selected.
If database is included, the specified database is opened. This Put database is closed after the task is completed, unlike the database opened with Base. It is possible to copy records from one database to another with Suprtool.
Examples
For the first example, we assume that the D-SALES dataset is designed to contain a week's worth of transactions. Each night, the transactions from a week ago are moved to the monthly dataset: D-SALES-MON. The D-SALES and D-SALES-
MON datasets have exactly the same field declarations. The following Suprtool task would move one day's transactions from D-SALES to D-SALES-MON.
>base store
>get d-sales {read the weekly dataset}
>if purge-date=000401 {select one day's transactions}
>put d-sales-mon {adding them to the monthly dataset}
>exit
For the next example, we assume that the D-SALES-MON dataset is in a different database.
>base store
>get d-sales
>if purch-date=000401 {select one day's transactions}
>put d-sales-mon,ostore {add to OSTORE database}
>exit {the output file defaults to $null}
This example shows how Suprtool can read a disc file and Put each record in a database:
>input dsales {"dsales" has exactly the same format}
>put d-sales,store { as the d-sales dataset}
>exit
Notes
If the dataset selected for output is a master dataset, it is possible that some of the output records may be duplicate key values. If this happens, Suprtool prints an error message and terminates the task, unless you have enabled Set Ignore, in which case the duplicates are counted and reported at the end of the task. Duplicate records are not written to the output file.
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Q Command [Q]
Prints a message on $stdlist.
Q [ "string" ]
(Default: print a blank line)
The string of up to 253 characters is printed on $stdlist. The string is truncated to the record width of $stdlist.
The string must be embedded in quotes. Either single-quotes (') or double-quotes (") are permitted. The quotes are not printed on $stdlist.
Examples
The Q command is often combined with the Userpause command. The example is a usefile that provides an explanation of how long a task takes:
>q
>q "We will select all transactions over $10,000. Since"
>q "there are many transactions, this task will take"
>q "some time (usually more than fifteen minutes)."
>q
>userpause "Press any key when you are ready to start."
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Redo Command [REDO]
Enables you to modify and repeat any of the previous 1000 command lines.
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• Suprtool Commands
[ ALL | @ ]
REDO [ start [ / stop ] ]
[ string ]
[ ALL | @ ]
(Default: redo the previous command)
(Comma "," is short for REDO)
The Redo command allows you to modify the commands before it executes them. If you don't need to change them, use the Do command. Commands are numbered sequentially from 1 as entered and the last 1000 are retained. Use the :Listredo command to display the previous commands. You can redo a single command, a range of commands, or the most recent command whose name matches a string.
The Redo command uses MPE-style editing logic (D, I, R, U and >). The default mode is to replace characters. To delete, type DDDD under the characters to be removed. To insert, type I under the insertion spot, then the new characters. To undo your changes, type U. To append to the end of the line, use >xxx. To delete from the end of the line, use >DD. To replace at the end of the line, use >Rxxx. And to erase the rest of the line, use D>. If you prefer Qedit-style editing (Control-D, etc.), use the
Before command instead of the Redo command.
Examples
>ll *.fd {".sd" is not spelled right}
*.fd not found
>redo {redo most recent command} ll *.fd {last command is printed}
s {you enter changes to it} ll *.sd {the edited command is shown}
{you press Return}
>listredo all
>redo 5 {redo 5th command in stack}
>redo {redo previous command}
>redo -2 {redo command before previous}
>redo 8/10 {redo 8th through 10th}
>redo -10/ {redo -10 through last}
>redo rm {redo last "rm" command}
>redo rm temp {redo last "rm temp"}
>redo @temp {redo last containing "temp"}
Notes
The Redo command can be abbreviated to a comma, as in MPEX. You cannot use
";" to combine commands on the same line.
Hpmodify Keys – Reference
Here are the MPE-style REDO sub-commands:
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Directive Effect
i r d d>
>
>d
>r c u other
INSERT. If text follows the i, this text is inserted in the current line starting at the i position.
REPLACE. If text follows the r, this text replaces the same number of characters in the current line beginning at the r position.
DELETE. Deletes a character from the current line for each d specified in the edit line. Note that "d d" does not specify a range as it does in
MPE V but simply deletes one character above each d. Multiple d's may be followed by an INSERT or REPLACE operation.
DELETE. Deletes to the end of the current line from the position specified by d>. May be followed by an INSERT or REPLACE operation.
APPEND. If text follows the >, this text is appended to the end of the current line. If a > without text is positioned beyond the end of the current line, then a simple replacement is performed instead.
DELETE. Deletes from the end of the current line, right-to-left.
Multiple d's and INSERT and REPLACE strings may be specified after
>.
REPLACE. Replaces characters at the end of the command line. The last (rightmost) character of the replacement string is at the end of the line.
CHANGE. Changes all occurrences of one string to another in the current line starting at the c. The search string and replace string must be properly delimited. A proper delimiter is a non-alphabetic character
(such as ' " or /). The substitution is specified as cdelim search-string
delim [replace-string [delim]]. Omitting the replace-string causes occurrences of search-string to be deleted, with no substitution.
UNDO. A single u in column one cancels the most recent edit of the current line. Using the Undo command twice in a row cancels all edits for the current line and re-establishes the original, unedited line. If u is placed anywhere other than column one of the current line, then a simple replacement is performed. Undo makes sense only if you have a line on which you have performed some editing that can be "undone."
Simple replacement. Any other character (not i, r, d, d>, >, >d, >r, c, or u) will be put into the current line at the position above where it is placed, replacing any existing character. Simple replacement also occurs for the editing characters i, r, c, or > if they are not followed by text; or if > appears at or beyond the current end of line.
Hpmodify Examples
Here are examples of the MPE-style REDO sub-commands in action:
Edit Action
u u rxyz xyz
First occurrence undoes the previous edits. The u must be in column one.
Second occurrence undoes all edits on the current line. The u must be in column one.
Replaces the current text with xyz starting at the position of r.
Replaces the current text with xyz starting at the position of x.
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• 149
ixyz ddd d xyz ddixyz d d d d>xyz
>xyz
>ddxyz
>rxyz
>ixyz c/ab/def c"ab" cxyz
Inserts xyz into the current line, starting at the position of the i.
Deletes three characters, one above each d.
Deletes a single character above the d, skips one space, then replaces the current text with xyz starting at the position of x.
Deletes two characters, then inserts xyz in the current line starting at the position of the i.
Deletes one character above the first d, skips two spaces and deletes a second character above the second d. It does not delete a range of characters, making it unlike the MPE V version of Redo.
Deletes a single character above the first d, skips two spaces and deletes to the end of the line beginning at the second d, and then places xyz at the end of the line.
Appends xyz to the end of the current line.
Deletes the last two characters from the end of the current line and then places xyz at the end of the line.
Replaces the last three characters in the current line with xyz.
Appends xyz to the end of the line. In this case, the i command is superfluous, because > accomplishes the same result. Using >xyz would be sufficient.
Changes all occurrences of ab to def.
Deletes all occurrences of "ab".
Replaces the current text with cxyz, starting at c. Because delimiters have not been specified (as they were in the previous two examples), this is a simple replacement with the four characters.
Persistent Redo
Redo commands can be saved in a permanent file and can therefore be used from another session. You can use the Set redo command to specify a filename to save
your redo commands. See "Redo" on page 166 for details.
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Reset Command [R]
Resets aspects of the current task.
RESET [ ALL | @ | command [...] ]
RESET [ ALL | @ | command [...] ]
(Default: Delete/Sort/Key/If/List)
Parameters
More than one command can be Reset at once by entering several commands separated by a space or a comma. If no parameters are specified, Suprtool cancels the previous Sort, Key, If, Delete, and List commands. The other commands remain unchanged.
If ALL is specified, all of the Input and Output commands are canceled and database/files are closed. In fact, the only options that are not reset to the initial condition are Define, Item, Open, and Set options.
Examples
You began to specify a sort, but then you discovered that you specified the wrong database so you decided to start all over:
>base ostore
>get d-sales
>sort cust-account
>reset all {oops, wrong database}
>base store {now we have correct one}
In the next example, you entered an incorrect If command:
>if delivered>000401 {wrong field used}
>reset if {only reset the If command}
>if purchased>000401 { and specify it again}
This time both the If command and the Extract commands are incorrect:
>if delivered>000401 {wrong field used}
>extract delivered { in both commands}
>reset if,extract {only reset the If and Extract}
>if purchased>000401 { commands and start again}
>extract purchased,account
Notes
By resetting certain commands, other commands are also reset. For example, resetting the Base command resets almost all other commands, except the Output command. Resetting the Put command closes the output database when the database for the Put command is different from the input database. Resetting the Chain, Get, or Input command resets everything except the Base and Table commands. Resetting the Table command resets everything except the Base and Define commands.
Resetting either the Define or Item command resets both Define and Item settings.
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Select Command [SEL]
Specify a select statement for the currently open SQL database. The select command supports all of the features of the select command of the open SQL database. Only one select command can be specified at a time.
SELECT select-command
Allbase sorts data:
>select * from user.account@emp order by ename
Suprtool sorts data:
>select * from user.account@emp
>sort ename
The select-command can contain any expression or clause that is supported by the
SQL database. Some features (e.g., ORDER BY) may be done faster by Suprtool
(e.g., the Sort command).
Some Select commands can exceed the 256-character command line limitation. The
Select command, however, can be considerably larger if you use the $read feature of the Select command. This feature is similar to the If command $read feature and is invoked by entering the Select command on a line by itself (unlike If, you do not specify $read explicitly).
>select
-ename,salary,tax_paid
-from scott.employee
-order by ename
-//
>
The Suprtool prompt changes from ">" to "-" after entering the Select command by itself on a line. The entire command gets sent to the Select command parser after terminating with two slash marks (//) or a blank line.
You might realize greater performance gains with the Select command if you specify only the columns that you need in your output file for either tables with many items or when you need only a couple of items from a given table.
The following Select command
>select col1,col2,col3 from user.account@emp may be faster than
>select * from user.account@emp
Your mileage may vary.
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Set Command [S]
Enables or disables certain operating options within Suprtool. These options are not reset by Xeq or Reset commands.
ALLBASE number
SET ARITHMETIC CLASSIC|IEEE (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET BASECLOSE ON|OFF (not supported in Suprtool/UX)
SET DATE CUTOFF [number]
SET DEFER ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET EOFREAD ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET FIRSTREC [0|1] (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET HINTS ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET IGNORE ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET LABELLEDTAPEREWIND ON|OFF (has no effect in
Suprtool/UX)
SET LIMITS [Mpe ON|OFF] [ReadOnly ON|OFF] [Tablesize size]
ORACLE number (not supported in Suprtool/MPE)
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
SET PRIVMODE ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
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SET PROGRESS Percent [number] Minimum [number]
SET RECOVER ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET SORTFAST ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET SQUEEZE [ON|OFF] (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET SUBSYSTEM ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET SUSPEND ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET USERLABELS ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET VARSUB ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET ALLBASE ROWS number
SET ARITHMETIC CLASSIC|IEEE (has no effect in
Suprtool/UX)
SET BASECLOSE ON|OFF (not supported in Suprtool/UX)
SET BLOCKSIZE [size] (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET BUFFER [size]
SET DATE CUTOFF [number]
SET DATE FORCECENTURY ON|OFF
SET DATE IFYY2000ERROR ON|OFF
SET DATE MAPTOPHDATE8 ON|OFF
SET DEFER ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET DUMPONERROR ON|OFF
SET EOFREAD ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET FILECODE number (not supported in Suprtool/UX)
SET FILENAME Help|Link|Edit|Hint|Export|Outcount
filename
SET FIRSTREC [0|1] (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET HINTS ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET IFCHECK ON|OFF
SET IGNORE ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET ITEMABBREVIATEDATE ON|OFF
SET INTERACTIVE ON|OFF
SET LABELLEDTAPEREWIND ON|OFF (has no effect in
Suprtool/UX)
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
SET LIMITS [Mpe ON|OFF] [ReadOnly ON|OFF]
[Tablesize size]
SET LIST DATE number
SET LIST PCL [0|1|2|3|4|5|6]
SET LIST TIME number
SET LOCK [number] (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET NLS [number]
SET OPENMODE [number] (has no effect in
Suprtool/UX)
SET ORACLE ROWS number
SET PATTERN NEW|OLD
SET PREFETCH [number] (not supported in
Suprtool/UX)
SET PRIVMODE ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET PROGRESS Percent [number] Minimum [number]
SET PROMPT character
SET RECOVER ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET REDO filename
SET SORTFAST ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET SQUEEZE [ON|OFF] (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET STATISTICS ON|OFF
SET SUBSYSTEM ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET SUSPEND ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET USERLABELS ON|OFF (has no effect in
Suprtool/UX)
SET VARSUB ON|OFF (has no effect in Suprtool/UX)
SET WARNINGS ON|OFF
Each option is its own Set command. That is, you cannot specify multiple options in the same command. Instead, use multiple Set commands. For example, to Set
Statistics On and to define a PCL format for the List command, you would specify two Set commands:
>set stat on
>set list pcl 1 or
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Add system-wide Set commands to the
/opt/robelle/suprmgr configuration file.
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• Suprtool Commands
>set stat on;set list pcl 1
When Suprtool starts running, all the options are set to initial "factory settings". The
Suprmgr file may contain Set commands to override the initial values. Set commands remain set until the end of the Suprtool run, or until changed by another
Set command.
Some commands have optional parameters (e.g., the numeric value of Set Date
Cutoff). If the command is specified without a value, the default that Suprtool uses may be different from the program's initial value. When that is the case, the command description will show the initial value and the default-when-omitted value.
Allbase
SET ALLBASE ROWS number
(Initially: 100)
If you open an Allbase database, Suprtool reads more than one row at a time when processing the input source. By default, Suprtool fetches 100 rows at a time. You can vary the number of rows that Suprtool fetches with Set Allbase Rows. The minimum number of rows is 1 and the maximum number is 990. You must specify Set Allbase
Rows before entering the Select command.
Arithmetic
SET ARITHMETIC Classic | IEEE
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
Baseclose
SET BASECLOSE ON | OFF
This command is not supported in Suprtool/UX.
Blocksize
SET BLOCKSIZE [size]
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
Buffer
SET BUFFER [ size ]
(Initially: depends; Default: no change)
Set Buffer varies the maximum number of words that Suprtool allocates for input and output buffers. This buffer size limits the number of data blocks that Suprtool reads at a time.
Suprtool overrides the maximum buffer size specified, if that is necessary to get the task done. For example, when the blocks size of the file is greater than buffer maximum specified.
The maximum value is 14,336 words in Suprtool/V and 24,576 words in
Suprtool/iX. The default value used by Suprtool is the largest size that fits in the available data structures and still allows Suprtool to get the job done. Using Set
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Buffer to reduce the size of the buffer reduces the size of the stack that Suprtool uses for copy operations. Suprtool/V always uses a buffer size of 4096 words when sorting. This leaves the maximum amount of room in the stack for the sorting operation.
Date Cutoff
SET DATE CUTOFF [ number ]
(Initially: 10; Default: 00)
Date Cutoff tells Suprtool what century to use when Suprtool generates the date value from the $date and $stddate functions. This setting only affects the date values generated by the $date and $stddate function in the If and Extract commands. This does not affect user data.
Versions of Suprtool without Set Date Cutoff would assume 19 for the century for any user-specified $date with a two-digit year.
Now with Set Date Cutoff xx, Suprtool assumes the following: a value of 20 for the century if the two-digit year specified in the $date or $stddate functions is less than the value of Set Date Cutoff; a value of 19 for the century if the two-digit year is greater than or equal to Set Date Cutoff.
The initial value of Set Date Cutoff is 10. Therefore the default behavior in $date and
$stddate is to treat the two-digit years with values of 00..09 as 2000..2009, and the two-digit years with values of 10..99 as 1910..1999.
yy Value in $date With Cutoff 10 With Cutoff 25
… … …
… … …
… … …
We recommend that you always provide a four-digit year when using $date.
However, for reasons of backward compatibility, we introduced Set Date Cutoff. See
"Date ForceCentury" on page 158 for more information.
$Stddate and Set Date Cutoff
When $stddate has to convert from a date in only a two-digit format, the conversion to the four-digit date will use the value in Set Date Cutoff.
For example,
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>input salesdetail {a self-describing file}
>set date cutoff 15 {range is 1915-2014}
>def new-ship-date,1,4,double
>item ship-date,date,mmddyy
>ext order-no / sales-amount
>ext new-ship-date = $stddate(ship-date)
>out salesinfo,link
>xeq
In this example, if any ship-date has a year of 14 or less, then the century applied to the new-ship-date field will be 20. Ship-dates with a year of 15 or more will have a century of 19 applied.
Date ForceCentury
SET DATE FORCECENTURY ON | OFF
(Initially: OFF)
Set Date ForceCentury On will not allow a yy date to be entered in the $date function; it will force the user to enter a full ccyy date.
>set date forcecentury on
>item date-field,date,ccyymmdd
>if date-field >= $date(00/12/10)
Error:You must specify the century or Set Date ForceCentury off
The default value for Set Date ForceCentury is off.
Date IfYY2000Error
SET DATE IFYY2000ERROR ON | OFF
(Initially: ON)
By default Suprtool considers dates with a two-digit century component from the
$date and $today functions to be invalid when the dates resolve to be greater than
1999 and the If operation is a relative operation (e.g., greater than or equal to). You can control whether Suprtool considers this condition an error by using the following
Set command:
>set Date Ifyy2000Error Off
The following example shows what is considered to be an error by the If command and how the Set command can turn off the error check:
>def a,1,6
>item a,date,yymmdd
>if a >= $today
^
Error: Cannot use a date beyond 1999 for this format
>set date ifyy2000error off
>if a >= $date(2000/01/03)
We have chosen this condition to be an error by default because when the $date function in the If command resolves a date in a yymmdd format to a value beyond
1999, the result is not always a useful value. For example, a December 10, 2000 date in a yymmdd format would have a value of 001210, and comparisons to this value could be logically incorrect.
If you would have included a Delete command in a dataset selection task, you could have removed all of your records.
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Date MapToPHDate8
SET DATE MAPTOPHDATE8 ON | OFF
(Initially: OFF)
This set command will change any item command reference to phdate to mean phdate8, for assistance in converting to the newer phdate format found in
PowerHouse version 8.19 and higher.
The set command:
>set date MapToPhdate8 on changes only the reference to phdate8 in the Item command. It does not change references that already exist in self-describing files nor does it change the data.
With this setting enabled, any Item command reference, such as:
>item mydate,date,phdate will actually mean phdate8.
Defer
SET DEFER ON | OFF
This command has no effect in Suprtool.UX.
DumpOnError
SET DUMPONERROR ON | OFF
(Initially: ON)
With DUMPONERROR, Suprtool attempts to produce a formatted listing of records that cause a database error. The information printed may include the input record number, the output record number and the data values of the record. Suprtool uses current options of the List command to print the data values. If no List command is specified, Suprtool uses the List defaults.
Eofread
SET EOFREAD ON | OFF
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
Filecode
SET FILECODE [ number ]
This command is not supported in Suprtool/UX.
Filename
SET FILENAME Help | Link | Edit | Hint | Export | Outcount filename
See "Installing Suprtool" on page 7 for a complete description of this Set command.
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Firstrec
SET FIRSTREC [ 0 | 1 ]
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
Hints
SET HINTS ON | OFF
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
Ifcheck
SET IFCHECK ON | OFF
(Initially: ON)
With Set Ifcheck On, the If command produces an error if any field used in the If command is not contained entirely within the input file record. For compatibility reasons, users may wish to disable this error checking by turning Set Ifcheck Off.
Ignore
SET IGNORE ON | OFF
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
ItemAbbreviateDate
SET ITEMABBREVIATEDATE ON | OFF
(Initially: ON)
The specification of the Date format within the Item command by default expects the entire keyword. For example for the date format of Calendar, you would have to specify the entire token of Calendar. If you Set ItemAbbreviateDate On, you would only have to specify CAL for the Calendar date format.
Interactive
SET INTERACTIVE ON | OFF
(Initially: depends)
If you run Suprtool from a session, Set Interactive is On. If you run Suprtool from a batch job or with Stdin or Stdlist re-directed, Set Interactive is Off. When it is On,
Suprtool waits for answers to questions and continues processing even if there are errors. When it is Off, Suprtool aborts on any error, assumes the "correct" answer to any question, and generally acts as if there is not an intelligent being typing in the command. Suprtool chooses the "correct" answer, which allows the task to continue.
In most cases, this is the default answer. However, there are cases where Suprtool picks a different answer from the default. For example, an "output filename,erase" command has a default answer of "no," but with Interactive Off, Suprtool uses the answer "yes."
However, if you run Suprtool on a Remote Session that was created from a batch job,
Set Interactive is On even though you are NOT interactive. If you wish to have proper batch error processing, your first command after starting Suprtool should be
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Set Interactive Off. Set Interactive Off is also useful when automating on-line tasks with usefiles:
Suprtool –c"set interactive off;use usefile"
LabelledTapeRewind
SET LABELLEDTAPEREWIND ON | OFF
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
Limits
SET LIMITS [MPE ON|OFF] [READONLY ON|OFF] [Tablesize size]
(Initially: MPE ON, ReadOnly OFF, Tablesize 1 megabyte)
When Set Limits MPE is Off, you cannot execute any HP-UX command (e.g., !rm).
This is an irreversible option -- once disabled, it cannot be enabled again by the user.
Table Size
The Table command allows you to load large tables. Once these tables reach the size of real memory on your machine, performance starts to degrade. Setting Tablesize restricts the total amount of table space to the specified number of megabytes.
It is not necessary to enter both parameters in order to change one.
>set limits tablesize 2 {HP-UX command ability unchanged}
Due to internal restrictions in Suprtool, the maximum Tablesize is fifteen megabytes.
Read Only
Suprtool normally allows any user with the proper access capabilities to add records to a database. To prevent users from accidentally updating their database, we provide the following setting within Suprtool:
>set limits ReadOnly On
The ReadOnly setting, once turned on, cannot be turned off for the current run of
Suprtool. This disables all commands that potentially change data for the specified database.
If Set Limits ReadOnly is enabled, then the Add command in Suprtool will return an appropriate error message.
You can Set Limits Readonly on the command line using the -c option. For example the following command file can be used to restrict who has write access to a given database. In this example only the root user is allowed write access: if [ $USER = "root" ] then
/opt/robelle/bin/suprtool else
/opt/robelle/bin/suprtool -c'set limits readonly on' fi
List
SET LIST option value
Use Set List to configure default values for the List command. You can configure the default date, time, and format for LaserJet listings.
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List Date
SET LIST Date number
(Initially: 0)
When you select page headings with the List command by specifying a title, each page includes today's date. By default, this date is formatted as mmm dd, ccyy (e.g.,
Mar 20, 2000). Use Set List Date to specify a different default date format for future
List commands (e.g., Set List Date 2). The valid date formats are as follows:
0 (default) mmm dd, ccyy Mar 20, 2000
4 dd mmmyy 20 Mar00
List PCL
SET LIST PCL [ 0|1|2|3|4|5|6 ]
(Initial & Default: 0)
Use Set List PCL to configure the default format for LaserJet listings. This option defines the List device as a PCL device and indicates the orientation and font for the report. Set List PCL affects only the List command; it is ignored by the Output command. PCL stands for Printer Command Language, which is an HP standard for printers. The LaserJet is one of the first PCL devices to be released by HP.
By default, Suprtool assumes that your List output device is not PCL-compatible
(List PCL 0).
PCL 1. To print the Suprtool List output in Landscape mode (across the wide part of the paper) with the tiny Lineprinter font (16.66 pitch or 8 lines per inch), you should do the following (this setting prints 175 columns per line):
>:comment Maximum of 175 columns with this font
>set list pcl 1
>:comment You will need LaserJet with proper font cartridge
>list device laser123
PCL 2. To print the listing in Courier font, Landscape mode, 6 lines per inch, and
100 columns wide, use:
>set list pcl 2
>list device laserjet
PCL 3. This option selects the "standard" Portrait orientation with the Courier font of the LaserJet (80 columns across by 60 lines). You would use Set List PCL 3 when you insert a Font cartridge that overrides the default font (e.g., 92286F cartridge).
PCL 4. Selects Portrait orientation and Lineprinter font of the L cartridge (and others). This option prints 132 columns across the page by 80 lines.
PCL 5. Prints 80 columns on A4 paper by slightly narrowing the space between columns.
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
4
5
6
1
2
3
PCL 6. Prints tiny letters in Landscape mode on legal-size paper. This gives you 223 columns per line.
The PCL options, with the exception of PCL 5, were designed and tested with North
American letter-size paper. Suprtool can adjust the number of rows and columns for each option to match A4 if you add 2000 to the PCL code. You can also select the
ASCII character set (instead of the default Roman-8 character set) by adding 1000 to
the PCL code. See "List Command [L]" on page 131 for more details.
Here is a complete table of the PCL codes:
P
P
L
L
L
P lp courier courier lp courier lp
paper
Rows x
Columns
Letter-size
Rows x
Columns
Notes
58 x 188
43 x 110
64 x 77
85 x 128
64 x 80
60 x 223
60 x 175
45 x 100
60 x 80
80 x 132
60 x 80
60 x 223
"standard"
A4-squeeze legal-size
L and P mean Landscape or Portrait orientation.
List Time
SET LIST Time number
(Initially: 1)
When you select page headings with the List command by specifying a title, each page includes the current time. By default, the time is in 24-hour format (e.g., 23:02).
Use Set List Time to specify a different default time format for future List commands (e.g., Set List Time 2). The valid time formats are as follows:
0 none
1 (default) 24-hour 23:02
Lock
SET LOCK [ number ]
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
NLS
SET NLS [number]
(Initially: 0 or NLDATALANG JCW)
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Use Set NLS with files from MPE systems to specify the language to be used for sorting Character-type fields (see Native Language Support). The number corresponds to an NLS language; you cannot use the NLS language name. The common language numbers are:
Number Language
00 Native-3000
01 American
02 Canadian-French
03 Danish
04 Dutch
05 English
06 Finnish
07 French
08 German
09 Italian
10 Norwegian
11 Portuguese
12 Spanish
13 Swedish
Openmode
SET OPENMODE [ number ]
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
Oracle
SET ORACLE ROWS number
(Initially: 100)
If you open an Oracle database, Suprtool reads more than one row at a time when processing the input source. By default, Suprtool fetches 100 rows at a time. You can vary the number of rows that Suprtool fetches by using Set Oracle Rows. The minimum number of rows is 1 and the maximum is 990. You must specify Set
Oracle Rows before entering the Select command.
Pattern
SET PATTERN NEW | OLD
(Initially: NEW)
Prior to Suprtool for MPE version 3.1, there was no method of checking for the "@",
"#", "?", or "~" characters in a pattern. Version 3.1 introduced a new patternmatching routine, adding an escape character "&", and two new reserved characters
"^" and "!". Old Suprtool tasks that look for the specific characters &, ^, or ! will not work with the new pattern-matching routine. Users who are concerned about this can add the following command to their /opt/robelle/suprmgr file:
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
set pattern old
Prefetch
SET PREFETCH [ number ]
This command is not supported in Suprtool/UX.
Privmode
SET PRIVMODE ON | OFF
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
Progress
SET PROGRESS Percent [ number ] Minimum [ number ]
(Initial & Defaults: Percent 5, Minimum 50000)
The Set Progress command is used to turn the Suprtool progress report feature on or off. The PERCENT value specified tells Suprtool by which percentage increment to report the progress messages of any given input or output phase. The allowed range for set progress is from 0 to 25, the default is every 5 percent. If the PERCENT parameter is not specified, then the next parameter is considered to be the PERCENT value. This is to remain compatible with some earlier versions of Suprtool.
The MINIMUM value is the minimum number of records that an input file must have in order for the progress reports to be printed out. If the MINIMUM value is set to 15000, then the input file must have at least 15000 records or else progress messages are not printed out for the entire task. This value allows the user to turn off progress messages when reading smaller files. The default value is 50000 records.
To always print progress messages, just set the minimum value to 0.
Suprtool does not produce any progress messages under the following conditions:
1. Set Progress is zero.
2. Output is to $stdlist via the Output * or List commands.
3. The input source is an SQL database.
4. The number of records from the input source is less than the minimum value.
Suprtool checks whether or not to print a progress message at the end of each buffer.
Consequently, not all progress increments are reported for small files or datasets.
Suprtool reports the phase that it is in: whether input phase, sort phase, output phase or combined input/output phase (not sort).
The content of the progress messages is as follows:
• Percentage complete
• Phase and the total number of records processed
• Delta-Sec(Min) - the time elapsed from the previous message
• Wall-Sec(Min) - the total elapsed time
• CPU-Sec - the total CPU-Seconds at this point
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When using the record selection feature of the Input command, Suprtool cannot be absolutely certain of the total number of records. Therefore, the percentage calculation is estimated.
Prompt
SET PROMPT character
(Initially: > )
PROMPT tells Suprtool which character to use for prompting. Any special character can be used as the prompt character. For example:
/opt/robelle/bin/suprtool
>set prompt %
%open oracle demo reader
Recover
SET RECOVER ON | OFF
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
Redo
SET REDO filename
(Initially: none)
Commands that you enter at the Suprtool prompt are saved in something called the redo stack. You can recall commands from the redo stack using other commands such as Before, Do and Redo. By default, the redo stack is stored in a temporary file and discarded as soon as you exit Suprtool. This temporary stack is not preserved across Suprtool invocations.
Set Redo allows you to assign a permanent file as the redo stack. The redo stack is then available for future Suprtool invocations. To assign the Myredo file as a persistent redo stack, enter:
>set redo myredo
If the file does not exist, Suprtool creates it. If it already exists, Suprtool uses it. All subsequent commands are written to the persistent redo stack. The setting is valid for the duration of the Suprtool session. As soon as you exit Suprtool, the setting is discarded. Next time you run Suprtool, you will get the temporary stack.
If the filename is not qualified, the redo stack is created in the current working directory. This may be desirable if you wish to have separate stacks. If you wish to always use the same persistent stacks, you should qualify the name.
The Verify command shows which stack is currently in use. If it shows
<temporary>, it means Suprtool is using the default stack. Anything else is the name of the file used on the Set Redo command.
Concurrency
When Suprtool uses the default temporary stack, it is only accessible to that particular instance of Suprtool. You can run as many Suprtool instances as you need and each one gets its own redo stack. With temporary stacks, you will never get into concurrency problems.
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
If you start using a persistent redo stack, you might start running into concurrency problems. A persistent redo stack can only be used by one Suprtool instance at any one point in time. If you try to use a persistent redo stack that is already in use, you will get the following message:
>set redo myredo
The redo file is already in use.
Unable to open file for REDO stack
In this situation, Suprtool continues to use the redo stack active at the time and lets you continue to work as normal.
Qedit can also have permanent redo stacks. To prevent products from writing to each other's redo stack, it is advisable to have separate stacks for each product by giving them different file names. For example if you use
>set redo myredo you will have a redo stack called myredo for your Suprtool commands. If you exit
Suprtool and run Qedit and supply the same Set Redo command, your Qedit commands will be written to the same file that was used for your Suprtool commands.
Sortfast
SET SORTFAST ON | OFF
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
Squeeze
SET SQUEEZE [ ON | OFF ]
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
Statistics
SET STATISTICS ON | OFF
(Initially: OFF)
STATISTICS causes Suprtool to print statistics at the end of each task. This can be useful for determining the effectiveness of Suprtool's If and Sort command versus similar options on the Select command.
Subsystem
SET SUBSYSTEM ON | OFF
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
Suspend
SET SUSPEND ON | OFF
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
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Userlabels
SET USERLABELS ON | OFF
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
Varsub
SET VARSUB ON | OFF
This command has no effect in Suprtool/UX.
Warnings
SET WARNINGS ON | OFF
(Initially: ON)
Suprtool normally prints warning messages out to $stdlist. You can turn off these messages when you are running from batch by issuing a Set Warnings off command.
If you are simulating batch mode with the Set Interactive Off command, you must do the Set Warnings off after the Set Interactive Off.
The default for this setting is On.
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Sort Command [SO]
Specifies the next sort key via an Eloquence field, a table column name, or a field in
a self-describing file, or a Defined field. See "Key Command [K]" on page 128 for
sort keys specified by explicit byte position. Up to 20 Sort and Key commands can be specified per extract task. The first key entered is the major sort key.
SORT field [(subscript)] [DESCENDING]
(Default: Ascending order)
Field
The field specified must be an Eloquence data item that is a field of the input source, a selected item from the selected table, or a defined field, or a field from a selfdescribing file.
Subscript
If the field is a compound item (e.g., 2X25), the first sub-item is the default if no
subscript is specified. You can sort on any sub-item by specifying the subscript. For example,
>sort address(2) {sorts on 2nd sub-item}
Descending vs. Ascending Order
By default, sorts are done in ascending order. Descending specifies that the field is to be sorted in descending order.
Examples
The most common use of the Sort command is to specify a sort field of a database field. You may use the Key command to specify all sorts. We recommend that the
Sort command be used wherever possible. If the structure of your database changes, your Suprtool tasks still work if sort fields are specified with the Sort command:
>open oracle demo reader
>select * from sales {input from a table}
>sort account {primary sort field}
>sort purchased,desc {newest transactions first}
>output dsales {write the sorted records to a disc file}
>exit
In the next example we sort a disc file. We create a field using the Define command.
Rather than using the Key command, we use the Sort command to specify the sort field. If the disc file changes, only the Define command must be changed:
>input invent {input is from a disc file}
>define a,11,2,int {"A" is an integer that starts…}
>output outfile { at the 11th byte of Invent}
>sort a {sort the input records by the "A" field}
>exit
With the =dataset form of the Input command, we can have even greater flexibility to use the Sort command. We assume that the MPE file Mcust has the same structure as the m-customer dataset. We sort the file using the first of the two street addresses in m-customer:
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>base store
>input mcust=m-customer {same format as m-customer}
>sort street-address {a repeated field, but only}
>exit { the first address is used}
Notes
The Verify command shows all of the current command values and the Reset command cancels them. If you have not defined any sort fields before the Xeq or
Exit command, Suprtool performs a copy only, no sort.
Suprtool uses some temporary files during a sort. It creates the files in the directory specified by the TMPDIR environment. The size of the files will be equal to the size of the output file. If Suprtool runs out of disc space during a sort, you can try to specify another directory for TMPDIR.
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Table Command [TA]
Builds a table of values for testing in the If or Chain command. There can be up to ten different tables.
TABLE tablename, itemname, table-keyword,
table-values [,HOLD]
Tables are used by the $lookup function of the If command and as input to the Chain command. The table keywords are Item, File, and Sorted. The total amount of table space is restricted by Set Limits Tablesize. Use the following scheme to select input records based on many data values:
1. Load a table with the values you are interested in.
2. Use the $lookup function of the If command to search the table.
3. Or, use the table with the Chain command to read a selected set of key values.
Adding Individual Values to a Table
To add a value for an item to a table, use:
TABLE tablename, itemname, ITEM,
value [,value]
When you start entering the values for a table, you must enter all the values for that table before starting another table. Once you switch to another table, the previous table is "closed" and you cannot enter anymore values into it.
Parameters
tablename
Any identifier name up to sixteen characters long. This name can be the same as the name of a Define field or database itemname, but we recommend that you choose a unique name.
itemname
An item from the database specified in the Base or Open command or a Define field.
This cannot be a real-type item.
value
A specific value that must match the type of the item. String values are extended with blanks to the length of the item.
Examples
Suppose that you wanted to look for several part numbers. You could use the following If command:
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• Suprtool Commands
>if part = "12345","67890","39201","92308","14892"
You could also load a table with the part numbers:
>table part-table,part,item,"12345"
>table part-table,part,item,"67890"
>table part-table,part,item,"39201"
>table part-table,part,item,"92308"
>table part-table,part,item,"14892" and use a different If command:
>if $lookup(part-table,part)
Sometimes you need to look for all records that do not have any of a set of values,
>if part <> "12345","67890","39201","92308","14892"
You would use the same Table commands, but a slightly different If command,
>if not $lookup(part-table,part)
Values with Decimal Places
If the itemname for the table has implied decimal places, the Table command accepts decimal points and scales input values. For example,
>item cost,decimal,2 {two implied decimal points}
>table cost-table,cost,item,10,10.5,10.75
>if $lookup(cost-table,cost)
>out out3 {select records for 1000, 1050, and 1075}
>xeq
Adding Values from a File
You may need to look for hundreds of part numbers. The Table command accepts the table values from a file. The file must contain lookup values in exactly the same format as the itemname which describes the data. Duplicates are eliminated as they are loaded into the table. For a table consisting of values from a file use:
TABLE tablename, itemname, FILE | SORTED, filename [,HOLD]
TABLE tablename, itemname, FILE | SORTED, filename
[,HOLD]
Parameters
itemname
The item determines the data-type and length of the key values in the table. You can only load a table from a self-describing file. Suprtool first checks for the field in the self-describing file.
FILE vs. SORTED
The File option assumes that the file of table values is not sorted. Sorting a large file of values is slow. If the file is already sorted, use the Sorted option: Suprtool checks the records to make sure they are in ascending order.
filename
A valid HP-UX file name; the file must be self-describing.
Hold
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
By default, the Xeq command resets all tables. Use the Hold option when using the same table in more than one extract task. When Hold is specified, the Xeq command does not reset the table. Hold applies to individual tables, not all tables.
>table part-table,part,file,partin,hold
Examples
If all of your part numbers are in the file Partin, you use:
>table part-table,part,file,partin
>if $lookup(part-table,part)
The following example uses Suprtool to create a file of sales orders for customers in arrears. The orders data is in the database, but the customer information is in a disc file. Suprtool reads the disc file and creates a new self-describing file of customer numbers that are in arrears. This SD file is then used to select the orders for these customers from the orders table in the database. The account item occurs in both the disc file and the database. When the Suprtool table is loaded, the account field information is obtained from the self-describing arrears file.
>input customers,r 60,nolf {disc file}
>def account,1,8,display
>def status,40,2
>if status="30" {customers in arrears}
>extract account, status
>out arrears,link {self-describing output}
>xeq {for the Table command}
>open oracle demo reader
>select * from orders {sales orders}
>table cust-table,account,file,arrears
>if $lookup(cust-table,account)
>output badorders
>xeq
In this next example, low inventory items from the Inventory table are saved in the
SD file Invent. We use this file to load a Suprtool table and select the records from the Product database table. On the table command, we use the "sorted" tablekeyword instead of "file" because the Invent file is already sorted. We then create a new file Lowprods with all the product information of the low inventory items.
>select * from inventory
>if on_hand_qty < 10 {select records}
>sort product_no {sort by key value}
>out invent,link {later, use this file}
>xeq {in the Table command}
>sel * from product {contains product description}
>table product-table,product_no,sorted,invent
>if $lookup(product-table,product_no)
>sort product_no
>output lowprods
>xeq
Suprtool can load up to ten tables, either from separate files or the same file. The following example assumes that the files are self-describing.
>input customer
>table cust-table,custno,file,custfile
>table zip-table,zipcode,file,custfile
>if $lookup(cust-table,custno) and $lookup(zip-table,zipcode)
>output newcust,link
>xeq
Keep in mind that using multiple tables may be more memory intensive and require more resources.
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Notes
The Xeq command clears any tables that are not held. Searching huge tables is CPUintensive. If you do this on-line, it seriously affects other users. While it is possible to load tables as large as 15 megabytes, we suggest that you make sure that there is enough real memory to hold the table. Set Limits Tablesize restricts the maximum size of tables, so you can limit the total amount of table space to a specified number of megabytes.
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Total Command [T]
Totals specified fields in the selected input records.
TOTAL field [(subscript)] [decimal-places]
(Default: subscript=first sub-item, decimal-places=0)
Parameters
Each totaled field must be an Eloquence field, a database column name, or a field from a self-describing file, or a Defined field. Total specifies that a total value for the field be printed after processing the records. There does not have to be any output file (i.e., it can be $null) for a total to be printed. There can be up to 15 totaled fields.
The subscript is valid only for compound items. If no subscript is specified, the first field of a compound item is totaled. The decimal-places provides a decimal point when the final total is printed. If the Item command specifies the number of implied decimal places, the decimal-places parameter is not needed. The values within each field are assumed to be aligned.
$File Options
Writing totals to a file is not supported in Suprtool/UX.
Examples
The first example prints the totals for a single field.
>in file1, r 40, nolf
>def amount,1,5
>total amount
>xeq
Totals (TUE, OCT 10, 2000, 4:30 PM):
AMOUNT 611105+
The next example is identical to the previous one, except that we qualify the total with the number of decimal places.
>in file1, r40, nolf
>total amount,2
>xeq
Totals (TUE, OCT 10, 2000, 4:31 PM):
AMOUNT 6111.05
The previous example specified the number of decimal places by using the Total command. The next example is the preferred way to specify decimal places because it qualifies the balance field with two decimal places for all Suprtool commands.
This example also totals two fields.
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>input file1, r 40, nolf
>def balance,11,4,integer
>def overdue,21,4,integer
>item balance,decimal,2
>item overdue,decimal,2
>total balance
>total overdue
>xeq
Totals (TUE, OCT 10, 2000, 4:32 PM):
BALANCE 143598.16
OVERDUE 17399.73
Sort Break Totals
Please refer to the Duplicate command on how to generate sort break totals.
Notes
You cannot combine the Total command with the Total option of the Duplicate command.
The Total command prints out a date and time stamp on the title line. This is for audit purposes.
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Update Command [UP]
Update one or more noncritical fields in an Eloquence dataset.
UPDATE [ CIUPDATE ]
UPDATE [ CIUPDATE ]
Specify the fields to be updated and their new values with the Extract command. The
Update command must be specified after the Chain or Get command, but before the
Extract command(s). You can update part of an Eloquence field by defining the part you are interested in and then using the defined field name in the Extract command.
The Update command can change values in critical fields (Eloquence search or sort fields). To update critical fields, you must specify the Ciupdate option, and
CIUPDATE must be On or Allowed in the database.
Example
This example selects all inventory items with a unit-cost less than $10.00 and increases the unit-cost by five percent.
>get d-inventory {input dataset}
>item unit-cost,decimal,2 {implied decimal places}
>if unit-cost < 10.00 {selection criteria}
>update {Update must come before Extract}
>extract unit-cost = & {calculate the new …}
unit-cost * 1.05 {… unit-cost value}
>xeq
This next example selects all inventory items with a part number of 12345677 and changes it to 12345678.
>get d-inventory {input dataset}
>if product-no = 12345677 {selection criteria}
>update ciupdate
>extract product-no = 12345678 {new unit-cost value}
>xeq
You can set CIUPDATE by using the DBUTIL Utility. To set CIUPDATE on just run Dbutil and use the Set command:
:run dbutil.pub.sys
>>set dbname ciupdate=on
>>exit
Notes
The only commands that can be combined with Update are selection commands
(e.g., the If command). The following commands are not allowed: Delete, Duplicate,
Key, List, Output, Put, Sort, or Total. You cannot update critical fields in master datasets. Update does not work with disc files or SQL databases.
If you are updating a packed or display field, remember that Suprtool uses unsigned values for non-negative numbers unless you add a leading plus sign to the number.
See "Packed and Display Constants" on page 86 for more details.
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Use Command [U]
Specifies a file of commands to be executed as a group.
USE[Q] filename
Database Date Items
A usefile makes your task easier by allowing common commands to be specified once in an external file. A common reason for usefiles is to isolate Define and Item commands for a database in one place. This makes future changes easier and prevents mistakes. In this example, we isolate all Item commands for dates from our database in a Suprtool usefile.
>use store.suprtool define delivered,deliv_date define purchased,purch_date item delivered ,date ,yymmdd item purchased ,date ,yymmdd
Dataset Field Definitions
In the store database, the street-address is a 2X25 item. Suppose that you always wanted to refer to the first and second part of the address with different names. The following usefile would access the m-customer dataset and define the two necessary fields:
>use mcust.suprtool get m-customer define street-address-1,street-address(1) define street-address-2,street-address(2)
Quiet Execution
By default, Suprtool displays the commands in a usefile as they are executed. The quiet option is not used in the examples above so that you could see the actual commands inside each usefile. Suprtool can execute commands quietly using the
Useq command:
>useq store.use {no commands are listed}
Nested Usefiles
Usefiles may be nested. In other words, a usefile may use another usefile to a depth of ten files. For example if the contents of the Usedef usefile has a references to
Useext, both usefiles would be executed:
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• Suprtool Commands
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
>in dsales
>use usedef define delivered,deliv_date define purchased,purch_date item delivered ,date ,yymmdd item purchased ,date ,yymmdd use useext ext cust-account ext deliv-date ext product-no ext product_price ext purch_date ext sales-qty ext sales-tax ext sales_total
>xeq
Care must be taken when entering Use commands with a stacked command after a usefile reference. For example, if you enter use usedef;def j,1,6,byte the Define command will not be executed until after the Usedef and any other nested
Use commands are finished.
Notes
The usefile may be an unnumbered, fixed-length file or a Qedit workfile, but no more than 256 characters per record will be processed. For compatibility with Qedit,
Useq can be abbreviated to UQ.
If a Use file ends with an ampersand, Suprtool will assume that you are continuing the current command on the next line, outside of the use file.
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Userpause Command [USER]
The Userpause command prints a prompt message on the screen and waits for the user to press a key.
USERPAUSE [ "string" ]
(Default: read without a prompt)
Prints the string and waits for any key. Leading spaces in the string are printed.
Examples
In this example, we have a usefile that displays a message and then waits for the user before starting the task.
>q
>q "We will select all transactions over $10,000. Since"
>q "there are many transactions, this task will take"
>q "some time (usually more than fifteen minutes)."
>q
>userpause "Press any key when you are ready to start."
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Verify Command [V]
Displays the specifications that you have entered so far.
VERIFY [ ALL | @ | VERSION | command [...] ]
VERIFY [ ALL | @ | VERSION | command [...] ]
(Default: Input, Output, Sort, Numrecs, changed Set values)
Parameters
More than one command can be verified at once by entering several command names separated by a comma or a space. The format of the Verify output is organized into columns wherever possible.
For Verify All, Suprtool prints all of the information concerning the current invocation of Suprtool, including the value of the Set options and the Suprtool version number.
For Verify Version, Suprtool prints out the version information.
Verify with no parameters prints the current values for Chain, Get, Input, Output, and Key or Sort commands. It also prints those Set options which are not currently at their default setting.
Examples
>v
>verify
>verify input {current input file}
>verify if {selection criteria}
>verify all {all current options}
>verify version {version number of Suprtool}
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Xeq Command [X]
Terminates entry of commands and begins the extract from the input source.
XEQ
XEQ
Notes
After the Xeq, Suprtool processes the task and accepts commands to specify another task. Compare this with the Exit command, which stops Suprtool after processing the input. After an Xeq command, all parameters of Suprtool are reset to their initial values, except any database that is left open, the Set options, and the Defined fields even though their calculated offsets are not guaranteed to be correct for the next file processed.
Examples
>open oracle demo reader
>select * from customer
>output mcstfile
>xeq {copies Customer to Mcstfile}
>select * from orders
>output allorders
>xeq {copies Orders to Allorders}
>exit {terminate, no task to do}
{last Xeq could have been Exit}
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Calculator Command [=]
Evaluates an expression and prints the result in one of several formats.
=expression [,O | D | B | H | A | # | % | $]
=expression [,O | D | B | H | A | # | % | $]
Any command that begins with an equal sign (=) is treated as an expression to be evaluated. An expression consists of numbers and operators, followed by an optional display format.
The operators can be addition (+), subtraction (-), multiplication (*), division (/), or exponentiation (**). The value of the expression is printed immediately on $stdlist.
=20+15 {add two numbers together}
Result=35.0
=20*15 {multiply the same numbers}
Result=300.0
=20-15 {subtraction}
Result=5.0
=20/15 {divide, print precise result}
Result=1.33333333333
=20**15 {20 raised to the 15th power}
Result=.327680000000E+20
Order of Evaluation
Unlike most programming languages, the calculator always evaluates the calculation from left to right. This is similar to an electronic calculator, where each keystroke is operated on immediately. You can use parentheses to force the calculator to evaluate the expression in a different order.
=14+16+15/3 {compute an average}
Result=15.0
=14+16+(15/3) {add 14, 16, and the result of 15/3}
Result=35.0
=14+((16+15)/3) {add 16 + 15, divide by 3, then add to 14}
Result=24.3333333333
Percentages
A number in the calculator expression may be followed by a percent sign (%). The calculator assumes that you want to qualify the number as a percentage.
=125*5% {what is 5% of 125}
Result=6.25
=125+125*5% {add 5% of 125 to 125}
Result=12.5
=125+(125*5%) {oops, we needed to change the order}
Result=131.25 {this looks like the answer we wanted}
The last two examples show the importance of the order in which calculator evaluates the expression. We needed to use parentheses to force calculator to evaluate our expression in the correct order.
Display Formats
A calculator expression may be followed by a comma and a display letter. The default is decimal (#) and the options are hex ($ or H), octal (% or O), double (D),
ASCII (A) and binary (B). With these options, the result is treated as a 32-bit integer.
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• Suprtool Commands
=10,o {standard octal format}
Result=%000012
=-10,o {negative number in octal}
Result=%37777777766
=100,h {hexadecimal}
Result=$0064
In Double format, calculator prints the double result as two octal numbers (the way they appear in DEBUG). The first number represents the high-order 16-bits and the second number represents the low-order 16-bits.
=10,d {treat result as two 16-bit octal words}
Result=%000000 %000012
=1000000000,d {high-order 16-bits are no-zero}
Result=%035632 %145000
=-10,d {note negative value, 2's complement}
Result= %177777 %177766
In ASCII format, up to four characters are printed in Hex, Decimal, and ASCII display format.
=$2020,a
Result=$2020: 32,32 :" "
=%20161 %72145,a
Result=$2071: 32,113:" q" $7465:116,101:"te"
In binary format, the high-order 16-bits are examined. If these bits are not zero, they are printed as two groups of eight bits. A one (1) means that the bit is on and a zero
(0) means that the bit is off. The low-order 16-bits are always printed as two groups of eight bits.
=10,b {high-order 16-bits suppressed}
Result=%(2)00000000 00001010
=-10,b {note negative value, 2's complement}
Result=%(2)11111111 11111111 %(2)11111111 11110110
=1000000000,b {high-order 16-bits are non-zero}
Result=%(2)00111011 10011010 %(2)11001010 00000000
Input Format
The calculator supports different input formats for numbers. Octal values are prefixed with a percent sign (%) and hex values with a dollar sign ($). An ASCII string of up to 4 characters is entered in quotes. The result of the last calculation is referred to using #.
=%12 {octal 12 or decimal 10}
Result=10.0
=%12,o {octal input and octal display format}
Result=%000012
=$10
Result=16.0
=%177766 {octal number that is really negative}
Result=-10.0
="abcd",h
Result=$61626364
=#,a {use result of last calculation}
Result=$6162: 97,98 :"ab" $6364: 99,100:"cd"
Programmers who make use of the MPE DEBUG software are often frustrated with the format that Double Integer numbers are printed. DEBUG prints them as two octal numbers. Calculator accepts two octal numbers as input and prints the result in standard decimal format.
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
=%35632 %145000 {treat as one double integer value}
Result=1000000000.0
=%177777 %177766 {negative double integer value}
Result=-10.0
Calculator Help
It may be difficult to remember all of the various options that the calculator offers.
For this reason, you can obtain a short description of the calculator by entering the following:
=? {? gives help}
{prints a summary of = functions}
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Suprtool Errors and Warnings
Two Types Of Messages
Suprtool prints two types of messages: errors and warnings. In both cases Suprtool is letting you know that it has encountered a condition of which you may want to be aware.
This appendix describes both kinds of messages and gives a partial list of warning messages.
Errors
Errors are defined as conditions which immediately prevent Suprtool from continuing, or which allow it to complete a task and then stop, because continuing would likely cause undesirable or erroneous results.
When Suprtool detects a serious error condition such as a syntax error in a command, a file system error, or a sort error, it prints an error message. For example,
Error: Unknown command name, try HELP
Error: Unable to open >OUTPUT file
Finding Errors Automatically
If you have software that scans spool files for error conditions, have it look for
"Error: ".
File System Errors
When a file system error occurs, Suprtool prints the HP-UX error message.
An error during processing terminates the current task (exceptions: bad data with an
If command when Set Ignore is On).
Arithmetic Trap Abort
If Suprtool should Abort with Parm=99x, an error has been detected in the
Arithmetic Trap Routine. This should never happen, so please report it to Robelle
Solutions Technology Inc.
NUMRECS exceeded; some records not processed.
You specified a Numrecs and have reached it. This condition is considered an error if the input is from a source other than disc.
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Warnings
Command entered is not a valid Suprtool command.
and
MPE access has been disabled. See Set Limits command.
Normally, commands that are not valid Suprtool commands are passed off to the operating system. If access to the O/S has been disabled via the Set Limits command, these commands are no longer passed off. If the user does not precede the command with a colon, we assume that the invalid command was meant for Suprtool. If a colon precedes the command, we assume that the command was meant for the operating system. On HP-UX systems an exclamation mark can be used in place of a colon.
Output-ASCII not allowed with Duplicate None Keys
Not all processing options are allowed in all combinations. The ASCII option of the
Output command, which reformats the output record, does not work with Duplicate
None Keys. Dup None Keys assumes that the output record has the same data definitions as the input record.
Xxxx is not the search field of Yyyy
This message is issued by the Chain command when the search field specified
(Xxxx) is not an index into the dataset (Yyyy). The field specified must be an
Eloquence search field.
When Suprtool detects an unusual situation that it should bring to your attention, it prints a nonfatal warning message. For example,
Warning: No input data specified
Warning: DATABASE must be RESTORED if System Crashes
The following list explains the most common warnings.
Not all sort fields were extracted.
The sort information will not be written to the output Link file.
This warning occurs when you >output filename,link and are sorting by a field, but the field is not included in the list of extracted fields. Suprlink cannot use the file, but it may be a perfectly valid file for other applications.
NUMRECS exceeded; some records not processed.
You specified a Numrecs and have reached it.
Record selection in effect, percentage calculation is estimated.
You specified a Get or an Input with record number selection and the percentage complete is estimated.
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Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX: Suprtool
Welcome to STExport
Welcome to STExport
Welcome to STExport for HP-UX Version 4.6.01. STExport converts fields in a selfdescribing input file into an output file that can be imported into different applications.
Summary of the STExport commands:
Before Form Quote Verify
Columns HEAding REDO Xeq
DAte HElp Reset XML
DElimiter HTML Set Zero
Documentation
FLoating Output Use
The minimum abbreviation of each command is shown in capital letters.
CD or Web Download
If you received a documentation CD with this version of Suprtool, you will find the documentation files on the CD. The installation program will start automatically when you insert the CD into the drive. If it does not start automatically, run
D:\setup.exe, where D is the letter assigned to your CD-ROM drive. If you do not have a documentation CD, you can download the files from the Robelle web site at http://www.robelle.com/library/manuals/ .
Printed Documentation
The latest user manuals and change notice are available in Adobe PDF format. If you do not already have the Adobe Acrobat Reader, you can get a copy from http://www.adobe.com/prodindex/acrobat/readstep.html
.
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Online Documentation in HTML Help Format
The Suprtool user manuals and change notice are available in HTML Help format.
Support for compiled HTML help (CHM files) is built into recent versions of
Windows.
Help Command
The user manual is also available to the on-line Suprlink user through the Help command. For instructions, try:
$help help
Notation
The STExport documentation uses a common notation in describing all commands.
Here is a sample command definition:
LISTREDO [ start [ / stop ] ] | [ ALL ] | [ string ]
1. UPPERCASE LETTERS are required elements in the command, and must be typed exactly as they appear.
Example: ALL
2. Highlighted lowercase letters, underlined or italic, are "variables" to be filled in by the user. In the help file, underlining and italics are not available and variables will appear simply in lowercase.
Example: start
3. [] - Brackets enclose optional fields.
Example: [ string ]
4. {} - Braces enclose comments in examples. Braces are allowed for comments in actual STExport commands.
Example: $Floating fixed 2 {Floating option}
5. | - Up lines separate alternatives from which you will select.
Sometimes, the alternatives are shown listed on several lines.
Example: [ ALL ] | [ string ]
6. In examples, there is an implied carriage return at the end of each line.
Installing STExport
STExport is installed as part of the Suprtool installation process. See the "Installing
Suprtool" chapter of the Suprtool User Manual for more details on how to install both Suprtool and STExport.
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Accessing STExport
How To Run STExport
To access STExport, type the following command:
/opt/robelle/bin/stexport
STExport/Copyright Robelle Solutions Technology Inc. 1999-2002
(Version 4.6.01)
$
After a short pause, STExport takes over your terminal and prints out some identifying information. You will notice that your command prompt has changed to
"$", telling you that you have made it into STExport. STExport expects you to type command lines, ending each one with Return.
How to Xeq an STExport Task
Normally, you enter a series of commands. These commands specify the Input file, the Output file, and the formatting options. Finally, you enter an Xeq or an Exit command. This begins the actual STExport task.
If you entered the Exit command, STExport finishes the current task, then returns you to the operating system or the program that ran STExport.
$EXIT
>
If you entered the Xeq command, STExport finishes the current task, then prompts you for another task. This continues until you enter the Exit command. If you wish to terminate STExport immediately (perhaps you are confused), enter Exit Abort. This terminates the STExport program immediately, without attempting any task.
Hardcoded File Names and ROBELLE Variable
Some file names are hardcoded into STExport. This section describes the hardcoded file names that STExport/UX may need. STExport will normally look for files in the
/opt/robelle directory unless you set the ROBELLE variable.
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ROBELLE Variable
Normally STExport looks files in the /opt/robelle directory. If you move STExport you must set the ROBELLE variable. For example, if you move STExport to the
/users/robelle directory you must set ROBELLE variable in the following manner: export ROBELLE="/users/robelle"
Using STExport in Batch
You normally run STExport as an on-line session. You type STExport commands on your terminal and STExport prints responses on your terminal. If you redirect stdin or stdlist, STExport assumes that it is in batch. STExport in batch is almost identical to STExport on-line, except for answering questions. When STExport asks a question in batch, no one is there to answer it. Therefore, STExport does not expect an answer from stdin. STExport assumes that you want your batch task to complete, so it always selects the option that will complete the command successfully. This is normally a "YES" answer, as in "yes, purge the file". STExport prints the question on stdlist, as well as the answer that it has selected for you.
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Introduction to STExport
Importing Data
Use STExport to produce a formatted output file that can be used to import data into databases and applications. Other databases have different requirements for the format of input data. You will have to experiment with the various STExport formatting options to find a format that your particular database tool accepts.
Input File
STExport reads one input file and formats each input record into one record in the output file. The Input file must be a self-describing file (use the Output-Link option in Suprtool).
Dates and Decimal Places
Use Suprtool's Item command to specify date formats and the number of implied decimal places when you create the self-describing file. STExport uses this information to correctly format the information in the output file. See Appendix A for a complete example of how to use Suprtool's Item command and Output-Link option to create an input file for STExport.
Data-Types
Each STExport formatting command applies to all fields of a specific data-type (i.e., you cannot specify formatting field by field, only by type). For example, all numerictype fields can be formatted the same.
The main data-types that STExport identifies are
Byte-Type: STExport assumes that character information is stored in byte-type fields. By default, all byte-type fields are surrounded by quotes and trailing spaces are removed.
Numeric-Type:
Floating-Type:
The numeric data-types are integer, logical, floating-point, packed, and display. STExport converts the internal representation of each data-type into a string of ASCII digits. By default, all numeric-type fields have a leading sign and are variable length. Where appropriate, numeric-type fields are converted with a decimal point.
All commands that affect numeric-type fields also affect floating-type
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Date-Type: fields. In addition, you can use the Floating command to specify the format and decimal places for floating-type fields (i.e., Classic or
IEEE floating-point numbers).
If a field has a date format, STExport does extra formatting. By default, dates are formatted into yyyymmdd (e.g., 20001125).
Formatting Commands
Use the following table to determine which command applies to which data-type:
Command Data-Type
Date date-type
Floating floating-type
Quote byte-type
Sign numeric-type
Spaces byte-type
Zero numeric-type
Commands
Many of STExport's commands, such as the formatting commands above, once set will retain their settings between tasks. Several other non-formatting commands will also retain their settings:
Command
Columns
DElimiter
HEAding
HTML
Each command and its options will remain in effect between any STExport task, unless specifically turned off.
For example, if a previous task has had custom Headings set with the Heading and
Heading Add options, the Headings will remain in effect for each subsequent task until a new Heading option is entered.
Performance Considerations
On average, STExport is three-to-five times slower than Suprtool. This is the price we pay for having all of STExport's formatting features.
You can make STExport faster by doing the following:
1. Pre-select only the records you need with Suprtool. The fewer records
STExport has to process, the faster it runs.
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2. Use Suprtool's Extract command to select only the fields that you need to import in your final application. The fewer the number of fields in the input file, the faster STExport can format each record.
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STExport Commands
General Notes
When you run STExport, it prompts for commands on stdlist with a "$" character and reads command lines from stdin. STExport commands contain a command name followed by one or more parameters, and are patterned after the same commands in
Suprtool.
In this chapter, we describe the STExport commands in alphabetical order.
Following each command name in brackets is the minimal abbreviation for the command. For example: [I] for Input and [O] for Output.
Abbreviating
You may shorten the command to the first letter of the command name.
$v {verify}
$x {xeq}
Uppercase or Lowercase
You may enter the letters in either uppercase or lowercase, because STExport upshifts everything in the command line except literal strings within quotes ("abc") and file names. These two commands are identical:
$EXIT
$exit
Comments on Command Lines
Comments may appear at the end of any command line, when they are surrounded by braces. Many of the examples in this manual show comments at the end of each command line. You can enter a comment as the only item in a STExport command line. When continuing command lines, the comment can appear before or after the continuation character.
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${ format reals with two decimal places. }
$input invoices
$floating fixed 2 {Floating option}
$output invfile {produces the file we want}
$exit
HP-UX Commands
STExport accepts HP-UX commands, with or without an exclam.
$!ls
$ls
For commands that are the same in both STExport and HP-UX, STExport executes the HP-UX command only if you type the exclam. For example:
$set {you get STExport set command}
$!set {you get HP-UX set command (ksh)}
STExport/UX executes any HP-UX command (e.g., ll), or script file.
File Names
STExport's Input and Output commands accept any valid HP-UX file name. File names are currently limited to 240 characters.
Calculator
Any command line beginning with an equal sign (=) is treated as a calculator expression. This feature can be used to do other calculations without the need of an electronic calculator.
You can obtain a short description of the calculator by entering the following:
=? {? gives a summary of = functions}
For a detailed description of the calculator and its options, see the Suprtool manual.
Control-Y
You can interrupt a STExport task with the Control-Y key (hold down Control while striking Y). STExport responds by telling you how far it has gotten (IN=, OUT=, etc.), and asking if you wish to stop. Hit the Return key to continue or type YES to stop the task.
Many HP-UX sites use Control-C as the interrupt key instead of Control-Y. Use the
HP-UX "stty" command to display your 'intr' setting.
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Before Command [B]
Repeat any combination of the previous 1000 command lines, with or without editing.
[ string ]
[ ALL | @ ]
BEFORE [ start [ / stop ] ]
[ string ]
[ ALL | @ ]
(Default: redo previous line)
(BQ=redo without change)
The Before command allows you to modify the commands before it executes them.
If you don't need to change them, use BQ or Do.
The Before command uses Qedit-style control characters for modifying the commands. The default mode is to replace characters. To delete, use Control-D; to insert, use Control-B. If you prefer HP-style modify (D, R, I, and U), use the Redo command instead of Before.
Examples
$ll *.fd {".sd" is not spelled right}
*.fd not found
$Before {redo most recent command} ll *.fd {last command is printed}
s {you enter changes to it} ll *.sd {the edited command is shown}
{you press Return}
$listredo -10/
$before 5 {redo 5th command in stack}
$bef 8/10 {redo 8th through 10th}
$b ls {redo last ls command}
$b ls * {redo "ls *" command}
$b @* {redo last containing "*"}
$before -2 {redo command before previous}
$before -5/-2 {redo by relative lines}
Modify Operators
If you wish to change any characters within the line, the modify operators are the regular Control Codes used in Qedit:
• Any printing characters replace the ones above.
• Control-D plus spaces deletes columns above.
• Control-B puts you into "insert before" mode.
• Control-A starts appending characters at the end of line.
• Control-A, Control-D, plus spaces, deletes from the end.
• Control-T ends Insert Mode, allowing movement to a new column.
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• Control-G recovers the original line.
• Control-O specifies "overwrite" mode (needed for spaces).
Persistent Redo
Redo commands can be saved in a permanent file and can therefore be used from another session. You can use the Set redo command to specify a filename to save your redo commands. Please see the Set Redo command for details.
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Columns Command [C]
Specify whether fields are formatted into variable- or fixed-length columns.
COLUMNS FIXED | NONE
COLUMNS FIXED | NONE
(Default: None)
Most PC software expects imported data to be in variable-length columns. Other database systems prefer data to be aligned in fixed columns. Use the Columns command to specify whether the output file has variable- or fixed-length columns.
Output File
The Columns command also affects the format of the Output file. If you specify
Columns None, the output file will have variable-length records. If you specify
Columns Fixed, the output file will have fixed-length records.
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Date Command [DA]
Specify a specific date-format for all dates.
INVALID ASTERISKS | NULL | "string"
DATE NONE | date-format [ "separator" ]
INVALID ASTERISKS | NULL | "string"
(Default: yyyymmdd Invalid Asterisks)
Use the Date command to specify an output format for dates. Use the Invalid option to specify how invalid dates should be formatted in the output file. The advantage of the None option is that it formats all dates, whether they are valid or not. If you select a date-format, the default Invalid option replaces invalid dates with asterisks
"*".
STExport must know which fields are dates and the format of each date. Use
Suprtool's Item command and Output,Link option to specify the date information.
Date Format
The date-format can be one of:
• ccyymmdd
• yyyymmdd
• ddmmyyyy
• mmddyyyy
• yymmdd
• ddmmyy
• mmddyy
• aammdd
STExport converts each date field from its internal date format into the format that you specify.
Separator Character
By default, STExport formats all dates without a separator between the day, month, and year. Specify your own separator by enclosing it inside quotes after you specify the date format. The separator must be one character long. For example, to specify dates in ddmmyyyy format with a slash separator, use
$date ddmmyyyy "/"
To specify dates in yymmdd format with a dash separator, use
$date yymmdd "-"
Oracle Dates
Oracle dates contain both the date and the time. STExport formats the date, but not the time. If you specify Date None, Oracle dates will be treated as byte-type fields.
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Since Oracle dates actually contain binary data, the output is often unusable by other applications, unless you specify a specific date-format.
Invalid Dates
By default, all invalid dates are formatted as asterisks. STExport treats any date that does not have a valid century, year, month, or combination (e.g., February 29, 2000) as invalid. You can specify how you want STExport to format invalid dates by using the Invalid option of the Date command.
If you specify,
$date invalid null
STExport will produce a zero-length field if you specify Column Variable and spaces if you specify Column Fixed. If you want to specify an explicit string for all invalid dates, do so after the Invalid option. For example,
$date invalid "%%%%%" will cause STExport to produce a string of five percent signs for any invalid date.
Example
First, use Suprtool to create the input file with the appropriate date attributes:
>get d-sales
>item deliv-date,date,mmddyyyy
>item purch-date,date,mmddyyyy
>output dsales,link
>xeq
Then use STExport to read the dsales file. Specify Date ddmmyyyy "-" which causes all valid dates to be formatted in day-month-year format with a dash as the separator:
$input dsales
$date ddmmyyyy "-"
$output dexport
$xeq
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Decimal Command [DEC]
The fields in the input file must have been created with decimal places, using
Suprtool's Item command.
Specify the format for the decimal place in numeric fields.
DECIMAL PERIOD | COMMA
DECIMAL PERIOD | COMMA
(Default: Period)
The Decimal command specifies what separator will be used to indicate the decimal place in numeric fields. In North America, the custom is to indicate the decimal place in numbers with a period (.). Outside North America, the custom is to indicate the decimal place with a comma (,). If the decimal place indicator is incorrect, it is harder to import files into other applications.
The Decimal command does not apply to floating-point fields.
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Delimiter Command [DE]
Specify a delimiter, if any, that appears between each field in the output record.
DELIMITER NONE | COMMA | TAB | SPACE | "string"
DELIMITER NONE | COMMA | TAB | SPACE | "string"
(Default: Comma)
Use Delimiter Comma to create an output file in "comma-delimited" format (this is common for PC database applications). Use Delimiter Tab to tell STExport to insert the tab character between fields, instead of a comma.
If you have selected Columns Fixed, you will likely want to remove the delimiter by specifying Delimiter None. If you want some white space between fixed-length columns, specify Delimiter Space instead.
String Parameter
You can put anything inside quote characters to specify your own Delimiter. For example, Delimiter " , " would insert a space, a comma, and another space between each field in the output record. You can use either single- or double-quote characters to specify the delimiter (e.g., Delimiter " " and Delimiter ' ' are the same). The maximum length of the delimiter string is three characters.
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Do Command [DO]
The Do command repeats (without changes) any of the previous 1000 commands.
[ ALL | @ ]
DO [ start [ / stop ] ]
[ string ]
[ ALL | @ ]
(Default: repeat the previous command)
Commands are numbered sequentially from one as entered; the last 1000 of them are retained. Use the :Listredo command to display the previous commands. You can repeat a single command (do 5), a range of commands (do 5/10) or the most recent command whose name matches a string (do list). If you want to modify the commands before executing them, use Redo or Before.
Examples
$listredo
$do {do previous command again}
$do 39 {do command line 39 again}
$do 5/8 {do command lines 5 to 8 again}
$do input {do most recent Input command}
$do -2 {do command before previous}
$do -7/-5 {do by relative line number}
$do 5/ {do command lines 5 to "last"}
Notes
The Do command cannot be abbreviated.
Persistent Redo
Redo commands can be saved in a permanent file and can therefore be used from another session. You can use the Set redo command to specify a filename to save your redo commands. Please see the Set Redo command for details.
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Exit Command [E]
Exit STExport in one of three ways. By default, perform the current task, if any, then leave STExport. Users are often frustrated when they exit STExport after specifying part of a task and STExport starts processing the task. To avoid this situation, use the
Abort or Suspend options to exit STExport conveniently without executing the current task.
EXIT [ ABORT | SUSPEND | XEQ ]
EXIT [ ABORT | SUSPEND | XEQ ]
(Default: Xeq)
Typing Exit with no parameters means Exit Xeq. STExport recognizes special command names which specify both the Exit command and an exit option (e.g., ES means Exit Suspend).
Exit Abort [EA]
Cancels the current operation and terminates STExport. The Exit command without parameters always attempts to perform the task currently specified, while Exit Abort cancels the task and terminates immediately. Should STExport be executed as a son process, Exit only suspends STExport, while Exit Abort actually terminates the process.
Examples
$:comment. You began to specify an input file, stopped for
$:comment. coffee, and decided to cancel the task
$:comment. upon your return.
$input invoices
... coffee break ...
$exit abort {cancel the task and terminate}
End Of Program
Exit Suspend [ES]
This feature is not currently available in STExport/UX.
Exit Xeq [EX]
To perform the current task, you can either use Xeq (which leaves you inside
STExport, ready to define another task) or Exit Xeq (which leaves STExport when done with the task).
Exit Xeq is the default option (i.e., specifying exit starts execution of the current task).
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Examples
/opt/robelle/bin/stexport
$exit {no input was specified}
/opt/robelle/bin/stexport
$input invoices
$floating fixed 2
$output invdata
$exit {format and stop}
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Floating Command [FL]
Specify the format and the number of decimal-places for floating-point fields.
FLOATING DEFAULT |
FIXED decimal-places |
SCIENTIFIC decimal-places
(Default: Default)
By default, STExport formats floating-point fields into either a fixed number or into scientific notation. Which notation STExport chooses, depends on the value of each field in each input record. You can force STExport to choose either scientific or fixed notation and the number of decimal places for all floating-point numbers. You cannot specify these options for a specific field or make them different for 32-bit versus 64-bit floating-point numbers.
Fixed Format
Use Floating Fixed to force all floating-point numbers to appear in a fixed format.
You specify the maximum number of digits to the right of the decimal point. If you specify Floating Fixed, STExport does not remove trailing zeros from the formatted numbers. If you specify Columns Fixed, all floating-point values will be aligned along the decimal point.
Scientific Format
Use Floating Scientific to force all floating-point numbers to appear in scientific notation. You must specify the number of digits to the right of the decimal point. The
Scientific option formats the number with all significant digits to the right of the decimal-point followed by the exponent (e.g., "0.47832E-10").
Notes
Both the Fixed and Scientific options attempt to round the number to the specified number of decimal-places within the maximum width for each floating-point datatype. If STExport cannot format a floating-point field in the specified number of decimal-places, the number appears as asterisks "****".
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Form Command [F]
Display the fields in a self-describing file.
FORM [filename]
If no file name is specified, the fields in the input file are displayed. The display shows the field type and field length in IMAGE notation. An I1-field is a single integer. Packed-fields show the number of nibbles (subtract one to obtain the number of digits). Byte and zoned-decimal fields show the byte length.
When showing the form of a self-describing file, STExport shows the byte offset of each field after the subcount, type, and sublength. The first field always appears at offset one.
There are two types of self-describing files. One type is produced with Suprtool's
Query output option. You produce the other type with the Link output option. The
Form command shows the internal self-describing version number, enabling you to tell the difference.
A.00.00 - Query Output Option
Compound fields have a question mark for the type, and the length is the number of bytes in the field. Sort information about the file is missing. Here is an example form listing:
$form custfile
File: custfile (SD Version A.00.00) Has linefeeds
Entry: Offset
CHARACTER X5 1 {length is five bytes}
ZONED Z5 6 {room for five digits}
INTEGER I1 11 {single integer}
DOUBLE I2 13 {double integer}
PACKED P6 17 {room for five digits}
QUAD I4 20 {eight-byte integer}
REPEATINT ?6 28 {compound field}
LOGICAL K1 34 {single logical}
DBLLOG K2 36 {double logical}
Entry Length: 44 Blocking: 1
B.00.00 - Link Output Option
These self-describing files contain information about how the file was sorted.
Compound fields are handled correctly, so the Form command shows compound fields just as you would see them in IMAGE. The Item command in Suprtool identifies the date format or the number of decimal places of an item. The Link output option saves the date and decimal attributes as part of the field description:
$form custfile
File: datafile (SD Version B.00.00) Has Linefeeds
Entry: Offset
CHARACTER X5 1 <<Sort #1 >>
REPEATINT 3I1 6 {compound field}
DATE J2 12 <<YYYYMMDD>>
DOLLAR P6 16 << .2 >>
Entry Length: 16 Blocking: 1
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Heading Command [HEA]
Specify a heading, if any, that appears as the first record of the output file.
HEADING NONE | FIELDNAMES |
string | ADD string | COLUMN string
HEADING NONE | FIELDNAMES |
string | ADD string | COLUMN string
(Default: None)
When importing data into other applications the first line of the import file is often treated as field names or headings. Use the Heading command to specify what
STExport should write as the first line of the output file.
Field Names
If you specify Heading Fieldnames, STExport creates a default heading. This heading is constructed by using the field name of each field in the input file. The
Fieldname option uses the formatting options that apply to byte-type fields to determine the final format (e.g., the Quote command).
STExport produces multiple field names for compound fields. For compound fields, the repeat count is used to determine the number of field names. The repeat count is appended to the field name, starting with one, until all the field names have been generated.
User Specified Heading
You can specify your own heading line by doing:
>heading "your heading"
Because the maximum length of an STExport input line is 256 characters, you may not be able to specify a long heading with a single Heading command. Use Heading
Add to add additional strings to your heading:
Heading "Account" {Note no Add in first string}
Heading Add "First Name "
Heading Add "Last Name "
Heading Add "City "
Heading Add "State "
If you specify your own heading, STExport does not attempt to apply any formatting options. If you need each field in the heading line to be surrounded by quotes and separated by commas, you have to supply these yourself. For example,
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Heading '"Account"' {Note no Add in first string}
Heading Add ','
Heading Add '"First Name"'
Heading Add ','
Heading Add '"Last Name"'
Heading Add ','
Heading Add '"City"'
Heading Add ','
Heading Add '"State"'
Column Headings
It is difficult to get headings right when you have to specify all the quotes and delimiters with the Heading Add option. Instead, use Heading Column to specify individual column headings without having to type formatting information.
STExport then uses the current quote and delimiter settings in the heading.
For example, if you specify:
Heading Column 'Account'
Heading Column 'First Name'
Heading Column 'Last Name'
Heading Column 'City'
Heading Column 'State' and Quote Double and Delimiter Comma are in effect, then the heading STExport produces will be:
"Account","First Name","Last Name","City","State"
Notes
You cannot combine the Add and Column options. You must specify one or the other. If you start with Heading Add and then later specify Heading Column,
STExport erases the heading you created with Heading Add and starts over with the first column that you specify with Heading Column. Similarly, if you start with
Heading Column, a Heading string or Heading Add will start over with a new heading.
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Help Command [H]
Show what commands and options are available in STExport.
HELP [ command | keyword [ ,section ] ]
(Default: browse through the entire help file)
Command Help
If you specify any parameters, Help first assumes that you want help on a specific
STExport command. If you know the structure of the help file, you can specify one of the keywords under the command name.
$help sign {help on the Sign command}
$help sign,trailing {trailing section of the Sign command}
Keyword Help
If we cannot find any help in the "Commands" section of the help file, we assume that you specified one of the outer-level keywords in the help file. To see this list of keywords, type help with no parameters. You see a short introduction to STExport and then a list of keywords. You can specify any of these keywords on the Help command. You can also specify a subkeyword.
$help intro,input {input section of Introduction}
Quick Help - HQ
HQ asks STExport to look under the keyword Quick in the help file. Quick contains the text from the STExport Quick Reference Guide, offering the experienced user a quick review of the syntax of any command.
$hq input {quick description of Input}
Notes
If no parameters are specified, Help allows you to browse through the help file,
/opt/robelle/help/stexport. The Help command uses the Qhelp subsystem from the
QLIB. For "help in help", type "?" when you see the Qhelp prompt character ("?").
The help file is organized into levels. To go back to the previous level, press Return.
Press F8 to exit the Qhelp subsystem and return to STExport.
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HTML Command [HT]
Use HTML to produce Web pages for either Internet or Intranet applications.
HTML NONE | PREFORMATTED | TABLE |
HTML NONE | PREFORMATTED | TABLE |
TITLE "string" |
HEADING "string"
(Default: None)
Web applications expect data in a special format called the Hypertext Markup
Language (HTML). Use the HTML option to request that STExport format the input file into HTML format.
Example
$html table title "Product Listing"
Maximum Size of HTML Files
Web browsers often cannot process large documents. The maximum size depends on the browser, the version of that browser, the operating system it is working on, and how much physical memory is present on the client machine. We suggest that you limit your Web pages to less than 1,000 lines and restrict the number of columns, unless you are certain that your users can handle larger files. This advice reflects not so much a limitation of STExport, but a limitation of how Web browsers work.
Preformatted Format
To preserve the columns and spacing of each output line, use the HTML
Preformatted option. This option puts an HTML <pre> tag around all the data in the input file. Most Web browsers will display preformatted text in a fixed-width font such as Courier. Therefore, if you specify HTML Preformatted, you should also select Columns Fixed.
Table Format
Use HTML Table to create output in HTML table format. STExport creates tables with a border between each column and row. Tables make it easier to read tabular information, but some older browers do not support tables.
If you specify HTML Table, all byte-type fields are left-justified and all other fields are right-justified. If you use Heading Column or Fieldnames, the column headings are specified with HTML table heading tags. Most browsers highlight the column headings in some way, such as bold text centered over the column.
Title
All HTML documents must have a title. By default, STExport uses the title "This is the Title". You should specify your own title using the Title option.
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Heading
The heading appears before the column headings and data from your input file. By default, there is no heading. Use the Heading option to specify your own heading.
Column Headings
If you specify HTML Table, use the Heading command to specify column headings for HTML output. The Heading Fieldnames option will produce acceptable column headings, but it is better to use Heading Column to specify a string for each of the fields in your input file.
Roman-8 Characters
HP e3000 and HP 9000 computers use the Roman-8 character set. Web pages must use the ISO-8859-1 character set. The characters in the Roman-8 set are similar to, but not identical with, the ISO-8859-1 character set.
When formatting byte-type fields, STExport attempts to convert any Roman-8 input character into the corresponding ISO-8859-1 character. Those characters that cannot be converted are dropped from the output. The following characters cannot be converted:
Notes
If you specify HTML Table, STExport sets:
• Quotes None
• Delimiters None
If you specify HTML Preformatted, STExport sets:
• Quotes None
• Delimiters Space
• Columns None
In either case, any changes cause STExport to print a warning to let you know that these options have changed. If you do want quotes around byte-type fields or delimiters between fields, specify those options after selecting the HTML option.
Dynamic Web Pages
The Common Gateway Interface (CGI) feature of your Web server allows you to execute custom programs or scripts, and to dynamically generate, then display Web pages. These custom programs and scripts can be written in almost any programming
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C++, Applescript on Macintosh, or Visual Basic.
Web Server
First, your Web server software must be configured to allow CGI scripts. On the
NCSA server, you need to change the srm.conf file to include
ScriptAlias /cgi-bin/ /usr/local/httpd/server/cgi-bin
This indicates to the server where the CGI scripts are located. If a user enters "cgibin" in the Uniform Resource Locator (URL), the Web server executes the program specified out of the directory specified, e.g., http://www.mycompany.com/cgi-bin/myscript.pl will actually execute
/usr/local/httpd/server/cgi-bin/myscript.pl
On the CERN Web server, you need to enter the following in the httpd.conf configuration file:
Exec /cgi-bin/* /usr/local/httpd/server/cgi-bin
Of course, the alias name and directory can be anything you want them to be.
A script can be coded to perform the same task every time it is run. There are different ways you can pass parameters to a script so that it can do different things.
We will try to keep it simple and focus our attention on a specialized program.
Our application will display a list of all sales records created yesterday. The information is stored in an Allbase database. The table is called demo.sales and has the following columns:
Column Name Allbase Type Nulls Suprtool Type:
N
Y
N
N
SALESTOTAL Decimal Y
Packed
Packed
Packed
Packed
Packed
Packed
Packed
Packed
DeliveryDate and PurchaseDate are in yyyymmdd format. Price, SalesTax and
SalesTotal have two implied decimals.
Before you go any further, you will have to decide where the new HTML file will reside. When someone connects to your Web site, the server software spawns child processes using a userid and groupid defined in the srm.conf (NCSA) or httpd.conf
(CERN) configuration file. This user must have read and write access to the directory specified in STExport's Output command. This directory must also be accessible by the server software as defined in the configuration file. For security reasons, it is not recommended that you create these files in the server's root directory.
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You can configure a default html directory (for example, userdir entry in CERN) for individual users. When the URL contains a ~user construct, the server knows it has to look for the default directory under the user's home directory. Let us assume the default is public_html.
You could create a public_html directory under the home directory for the userid specified in the configuration file.
Another option is to create a new user on your system with the same directory structure, whose sole purpose would be to hold these dynamic HTML files. For example, create a user called htmluser whose home directory would be
/users/htmluser. Create a /users/htmluser/public_html directory. Directory permissions should be read/write for user, group and others. The URL to read these would then be: http://www.mycompany.com/~htmluser/filename.html
Shell Script
Suprtool and STExport will be executed from a Korn shell script. Let us call it sx_orders.ksh. It can reside in any directory that has appropriate permissions to execute. Do not forget to assign eXecute permission to the file (chmod +x sx_orders.ksh). You can run this script manually from the $ prompt to see if there are any problems.
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#!/bin/ksh
#
# Make sure the PATH variable includes /opt/robelle/bin
# where Suprtool and STExport usually reside.
#
PATH=$PATH:/opt/robelle/bin
#
# Create a temporary logfile
# and get a file name for the temporary extract file
# temp_sxlog=`mktemp` touch $temp_sxlog temp_sxdata=`mktemp`
#
# Run Suprtool and extract the data.
# - Read commands using "here-is"
# - write messages to temporary logfile
# suprtool <<!EOD >> $temp_sxlog
Open Allbase /users/orders/db/OrdersDBE clerk
Select * From clerk.sales
Item purchasedate, date, yyyymmdd
Item deliverydate, date, yyyymmdd
Item price, decimal, 2
Item salestax, decimal, 2
Item salestotal, decimal, 2
If purchasedate = \$today(-1)
Sort customernum
Output $temp_sxdata,Link
Exit
!EOD
#
# Check return code in case Suprtool had a problem
# If so, send the "failed" return string to the CGI script
# including the name of the logfile
# if [ $? -eq 1 ] then
echo failed=$temp_sxlog
exit 1 else
#
# Suprtool task worked correctly.
# Can go on with STExport.
#
# Must go to the target directory
# because of file name limit in STExport
# and get a file name to store HTML output
#
cd /users/htmluser/public_html > /dev/null
temp_stexpdata=`mktemp -d .`
#
# Execute STExport to create the html file
#
stexport <<!EOD >> $temp_sxlog
Input $temp_sxdata
HTML Table Title "Orders Created Yesterday" \
Heading "Orders Created Yesterday (sorted by customer)"
Heading Fieldnames
Date YYYYMMDD "/"
Output $temp_stexpdata.html
Exit
!EOD
#
# Check return code in case STExport had a problem.
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# If so, send the "failed" return string to the CGI script
# including the name of the logfile
#
if [ $? -eq 1 ]
then
echo failed=$temp_sxlog
exit 1
else
#
# Everything worked fine.
# Send the "OK" return string to the CGI script
# including the name of the HTML file name.
#
echo OK=$temp_stexpdata.html
rm $temp_sxlog > /dev/null
rm $temp_sxdata > /dev/null
exit 0
fi fi
Perl Script
With such a simple example, we could have written the shell script a bit differently and then used it as a CGI script. However, shell scripts do not have enough features to easily handle parameters or complex forms.
Instead, it is typical to use another language as an intermediate step. One of the most popular CGI scripting languages is Perl. Perl has a full set of string handling functions and can be combined with graphics libraries available from various sources.
Let us call this one sx_orders.pl. It must reside in the directory defined in the server configuration file.
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#!/usr/local/bin/perl
#
# Execute shell script and capture returned string
#
$return_string = `/users/orders/scripts/sx_orders.ksh`;
#
# Return string can be OK=html file name
# or failed=log file name
# Split function separates return_string's 2 components
#
($status_word, $html_file) = split (/=/, $return_string); if ($status_word eq "failed") {
#
# If the script failed, print an HTML error page
# including the logfile
#
error_page
} else {
#
# If the script is successful, display the HTML file
# created by STExport.
# This URL automatically looks for the configured directory
# under htmluser's home directory.
# print "Location: http://www.hp.com/~htmluser/$html_file", "\n\n"
}
# Format an error message for the user sub error_page {
print "Content-type: text/html\n\n";
print "<HTML>\n";
print "<HEAD>\n";
print "<TITLE>Comment Form Error</TITLE>\n";
print "</HEAD>\n";
print "<BODY>\n";
print "<H1>Comment Form Error</H1>\n";
print "<HR>\n";
print "<P>\n";
print "Form input was not proccessed. Please mail your ";
print "remarks to <b>$webmaster</b>";
print "<P>\n";
print "<b>Content of the Suprtool/STExport logfile</b>";
print "<pre>";
print `cat $html_file`, "\n";
print "</pre>", "\n";
print "</BODY>\n";
print "</HTML>\n";
}
CGI Script
The CGI script can be invoked explicitly when you type the URL in your browser: http://www.mycompany.com/cgi-bin/sx_orders.pl
The script is executed either from an input form,
<FORM METHOD="POST" ACTION="/cgi-bin/sx_orders.pl"> or invoked through a link in a regular Web page
Just click <a href="/cgi-bin/sx_orders.pl">run script</a>
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If you enter the URL, choose the "submit" button on a form, or click on a link, the server will start execution of the Perl script. In turn, Perl will run the shell script.
Suprtool and STExport will finally be executed. A status code and a file name will be returned to Perl. It will print either an error page or the extracted information, depending on the status code.
There is a lot more you can do with CGI scripting and Suprtool. You could pass parameters to extract information out of different tables in Oracle and Allbase, or specify the sort sequence and the selection criteria.
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Input Command [I]
Specifies the primary input file.
INPUT filename
There can be only one Input file per task. The Input file must be a self-describing file, which should be created by Suprtool using the Output-Query or Output-Link option. If you want STExport to format date-fields and implied decimal places, you must use the Output-Link option of Suprtool when you create the file for input to
STExport.
Every record in the input file is formatted into a corresponding record in the output file. It is best to have Suprtool Extract only the fields you actually need. Only those fields needed for import into the final application should be present in the Input file.
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Listredo Command [LISTREDO]
The Listredo command displays any of the previous 1000 commands.
[ string ] [;REL]
[ ALL | @ ] [;UNN]
LISTREDO [ start [ / stop ] ] [;ABS] [;OUT=file]
[ string ] [;REL]
[ ALL | @ ] [;UNN]
(Default: display previous 20 commands)
(BJ and ,, are short for LISTREDO)
Commands are numbered sequentially from one as entered; the last 1000 are retained. You can display a single command, a range of commands, all 1000, or all the commands whose name matches the string. You can print the commands with
ABSolute line numbers (the default), RELative line numbers (-5/-4), or
UNNumbered. You can write the commands to your terminal. The Out option is not currently supported on STExport/UX. If you want to redo any of these commands, see Do, Redo, and Before.
Examples
$listredo 5
$listredo 5/10
$listredo help {print all Help commands}
$listredo -10 {print last ten commands}
$listredo ALL {print entire redo stack}
$listredo @;rel {print ALL, relative numbers}
$listredo rm {print all rm commands}
$listredo rm xx {print all "rm xx" commands}
$listredo @rm {print all with "rm" anywhere}
Notes
The Listredo command cannot be abbreviated, but BJ and ,, (comma comma) are accepted as a short forms.
Persistent Redo
Redo commands can be saved in a permanent file and can therefore be used from another session. You can use the Set redo command to specify a filename to save your redo commands. Please see the Set Redo command for details.
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Output Command [O]
Specifies the Output file.
OUTPUT * | filename [ERASE] [LF] [NOLF]
By default, the Output file is named "Output". If you specify Columns None, the output file will have variable-length records. When Columns Fixed is specified,
STExport creates the output file with fixed-length records.
Line Feeds
STExport's Output command allows the user to specify whether the output file has line feeds. Normally STExport determines whether to write out line feeds from the self-describing file. If the self-describing file does not have line feeds, then the resulting file from the STExport task will not have line feeds. This caused problems for some programs that import the file or for some browsers that use the HTML option. You can now explicitly specify line feeds in the output file by using the LF option.
$in ora.customer
$out file1ex,lf
$exit
To specify that line feeds are not written out to the file, you can use the NOLF option.
$in ora.customer
$out file1ex,nolf
$exit
Stdlist
If the output file name is *, each output record is written to stdlist. This is useful for trying out different formatting combinations until you find the one that best fits the application that you want to import data into. For example,
$input sdfile
$output *
$xeq
$floating fixed 2 {change one option}
$input sdfile
$output *
$xeq {view the result}
$sign none {change a different option}
$input sdfile
$output *
$xeq {and so on}
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Quote Command [Q]
Specify which quote character, if any, is to be used around byte-type fields.
QUOTE NONE | DOUBLE | SINGLE
QUOTE NONE | DOUBLE | SINGLE
(Default: Double)
Most software packages expect byte-type fields to be in one of two formats:
1. Fixed-column (see the Column command).
2. Surrounded by single- or double-quotes. In this case, you may also need to remove trailing spaces (see the Spaces command).
No Quotes for Fixed Columns
Use Quote None to cause byte-type fields to be output as a group of characters. In many cases, you would combine this option with Columns Fixed.
Single or Double Quotes
By default, all byte type fields are surrounded by double quotes. Specify single quotes using the Single option. If a byte type field contains the quote character specified in the quote command, it is replaced with a space. For example, if the input was:
customer's and Quote Single had been specified, then the output would be:
customer s
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Redo Command [REDO]
Enables you to modify and repeat any of the previous 1000 command lines.
[ ALL | @ ]
REDO [ start [ / stop ] ]
[ string ]
[ ALL | @ ]
(Default: redo the previous command)
The Redo command allows you to modify the commands before it executes them. If you do not need to change them, use the Do command. Commands are numbered sequentially from one as entered; the last 1000 are retained. Use the :Listredo command to display the previous commands. You can Redo a single command, a range of commands, or the most recent command whose name matches a string.
The Redo command uses MPE-style editing logic (D, I, R, U and >). The default mode is to replace characters. To delete, type DDDD under the characters to be removed. To insert, type I under the insertion spot, then the new characters. To undo your changes, type U. To append to the end of the line, use >xxx. To delete from the end of the line, use >DD. To replace at the end of the line, use >Rxxx. And to erase the rest of the line, use D>. If you prefer Qedit-style editing (Control-D, etc.), use the
Before command instead of the Redo command.
Examples
$ll fille {'fille' is a typo} fille not found
$redo {redo most recent command} ll fille {last command is printed}
d {you enter changes to it} ll file {edited command is shown}
{you press <return> }
$listredo all
$redo 5 {redo 5th command in stack}
$redo {redo previous command}
$redo -2 {redo command before previous}
$redo 8/10 {redo 8th through 10th}
$redo -10/ {redo -10 through last}
$redo rm {redo last rm command}
$redo rm temp {redo last "rm temp"}
$redo @temp {redo last containing "temp"}
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Reset Command [R]
Cancel the current task.
RESET
RESET
Reset closes the current Input file, then resets the Output file name to "Output".
Formatting options are not reset, only the task-related commands are reset. If you try to reset an individual command, STExport prints a warning.
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Set Command [S]
Enables or disables certain operating options within STExport. These options are not reset by Xeq or Reset commands.
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[WARNINGS ] ON|OFF
[XMLTAGCHAR ] "." | "_" | "-"
SET [MAPPED ON|OFF]
[REDO filename]
[STATISTICS ON|OFF]
[VARSUB ON|OFF]
Mapped
SET MAPPED ON | OFF
Mapped has no effect within STExport/UX.
Redo
SET REDO filename
(Initially: unnamed temporary file)
Commands entered at the STExport prompt are saved in something called the redo stack. You can recall commands from the redo stack by using other commands such as Before, Do and Redo. By default, the redo stack is stored in a temporary file and discarded as soon as you exit. This temporary stack is not preserved across STExport invocations.
The new Set Redo command assigns a permanent file as the redo stack, allowing the stack to become available for future STExport invocations. For example, to assign the Myredo file as a persistent redo stack, enter
$Set Redo Myredo
If the file does not exist, STExport creates it. Otherwise, STExport uses the existing file. All subsequent commands are written to the persistent redo stack. The setting is valid for the duration of the STExport session. As soon as you exit STExport, the setting is discarded. Next time you run STExport, you will get the temporary stack.
If the file name is not qualified, the redo stack is created in the current working directory. This may be desirable if you want to have separate stacks. If you want to always use the same persistent stacks, you should qualify the name.
The Verify command shows which stack is currently in use. If it shows
<temporary>, then STExport is using the default stack. Anything else is the name of the file used on the Set Redo command.
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Concurrency
When STExport uses the default temporary stack, it is only accessible to that particular instance of STExport. You can run as many STExport instances as you need and each one gets its own redo stack. With temporary stacks you will never get into concurrency problems.
If you start using a persistent redo stack, however, you might start running into concurrency problems. A persistent redo stack can only be used by one STExport instance at a time. If you try to use a persistent redo stack that is already in use, you will get the following message:
$Set Redo Myredo
The redo file is already in use
Unable to open file for REDO stack
In this situation, STExport continues to use the redo stack active at the time and lets you continue working as normal.
Qedit can also have permanent redo stacks. To prevent products from writing to each other's redo stack, it is advisable to have separate stacks for each product by giving them different file names. For example, if you use the command set redo myredo you will have a redo stack called Myredo for your STExport commands. If you exit
STExport, then run Qedit and supply the same command Set Redo command, your
Qedit commands will be written to the same file that was used for your STExport commands.
Statistics
SET STATISTICS ON | OFF
Statistics causes STExport to print statistics at the end of each task.
(Initially: OFF)
Varsub
SET VARSUB ON | OFF
Varsub has no effect within STExport/UX.
Warnings
SET WARNINGS OFF
(Initially: ON)
Suprtool normally prints warning messages out to $stdlist. You can turn off these messages when you are running from batch by issuing a Set Warnings off command.
If you are simulating batch mode with the Set Interactive Off command, you must do the Set Warnings off after the Set Interactive Off.
The default for this setting is On.
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Xmltagchar
SET XMLTAGCHAR "." | "-" |"_"
(Initially: ".")
In XML the tags that surrounded the data can not have any special characters other than hyphen, underscore and period ("-","_", "."). So STExport replaces any of the invalid special characters with a "." by default. You can change the default character
To be something else with the following set command:
$Set xmltagchar "_"
STExport will only allow the hyphen, underscore and period to be set with this command.
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Sign Command [SI]
Specify what should be done with the sign character for numeric-fields.
SIGN NONE | FLOATING | LEADING | TRAILING
SIGN NONE | FLOATING | LEADING | TRAILING
(Default: Floating)
All numeric-type fields, except logical fields, have a sign. Integer and floating-point fields can have either a space " " (for positive values) or a negative sign "-". Packed- and display-type fields can have a space " " (neutral), a plus sign "+" (for positive values), or a negative sign "-".
Specify Sign None to cause STExport to completely ignore the sign. If you specify
Sign None, no error or warning message appears if any numeric-types have a negative value.
Leading vs. Floating
If you specify Columns Fixed, it is easy to see the difference between a leading versus a floating sign. A leading sign always appears in the same column whereas a floating sign always appears before the first digit of a number. For example,
Sign Leading Sign Floating
- 22415 -22415
- 207 -207
- 16600 -16600
- 21910 -21910
- 8411 -8411
- 42 -42
- 16713 -16713
- 7970 -7970
Trailing Sign
Specify Sign Trailing to cause the sign character to appear after each formatted number. Remember that for many numeric-types the sign for positive numbers is a space. STExport always leaves room for the sign, even if it is a space.
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Spaces Command [SP]
Specify whether trailing spaces are to appear in byte-type fields.
SPACES NONE | TRAILING
(Default: None)
If byte-type fields are surrounded with quotes (see the Quote command), the Spaces command determines whether trailing spaces in byte-type fields appear within the quotes. Use Spaces Trailing if you want to retain all of the spaces in a byte-type field.
Software packages that store variable-length character data treat trailing spaces as data. Use Spaces None to remove trailing spaces for data that is imported into these applications.
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Use Command [U]
Specifies a file of commands to be executed as a group.
USE[Q] filename
Examples
A usefile makes your task easier by allowing common commands to be specified once in an external file. For example, the following usefile contains all the commands for creating the Invcust file:
$use invuse input invoices {input file to format} floating fixed 2 {formatting option} output invdata {produces the file we want} exit
STExport prints the lines in the usefile, including the comment lines. This allows you to include instructions and reminders in the usefile. In the example above, there were no commands for the user to enter.
Notes
Usefiles cannot be nested in STExport. The usefile may be any unnumbered text file or a Qedit workfile, but no more than 256 characters per record are processed.
By default, STExport displays the commands in a usefile as they are executed.
STExport can execute commands quietly using the Useq command. For compatibility with Qedit, Useq can be abbreviated to UQ.
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Verify Command [V]
Print the definition of the current task.
VERIFY
VERIFY
Verify prints the current Input and Output files and all export specifications; in other words, it is a Verify All command.
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Xeq Command [X]
Perform the current task.
XEQ
XEQ
Xeq checks that you have specified an Input file and an Output file. Then it performs the task and creates the Output file. Finally, it closes the files, ready for you to specify another task or Exit. If you also wish to leave STExport after completing the task, use Exit instead of Xeq.
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XML Command [XML]
Use XML to produce XML Documents for either Internet or Intranet applications.
XML
VERSION "string"
DOCTYPE "string"
FILE "string"
RECORD "string"
Example
STExport can generate "well-formed" XML output with just a few commands.
$input file1sd
$xml
$output myxml
$xeq
These four simple commands will generate the following file that packages such as
XMLSpy will consider to be "well-formed" XML. The result of such an STExport task will look as follows:
<?xml version='1.0'?>
<file>
<record>
<CITY>Los Altos</CITY>
<CREDIT-RATING>100000</CREDIT-RATING>
<CUST-ACCOUNT>4003302</CUST-ACCOUNT>
<CUST-STATUS>20</CUST-STATUS>
<NAME-FIRST>Ralph</NAME-FIRST>
<NAME-LAST>Perkins</NAME-LAST>
<STATE-CODE>CA</STATE-CODE>
<STREET-ADDRESS>Room 655</STREET-ADDRESS>
<STREET-ADDRESS>Los Altos 040033022</STREET-ADDRESS>
<ZIP-CODE>93002</ZIP-CODE>
</record>
</file>
Notes
By default STExport will add the simplest version tag at thebeginning of the file, then it inserts a <file> and matching </file> at the beginning and the end of the file.
Then STExport encloses each record from the input file in a <record> and </record> tag. Finally, the Self-Describing tags are added around each field's data values and edited appropriately.
Naturally users would want options to customize and specify the various options and tags themselves, in order to generate a file that is acceptable to their tools.
Version
You can specify the "version" tag at the beginning of the XML file with the following command:
xml version "?xml version='1.0' encoding='ISO-8859-1'?"
STExport will put the "<" and ">" around what is specified in the version string.
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Doctype
A Document Type Declaration can be made at the beginning of the file via the
!DOCTYPE specification. This typically tells whatever tool that is parsing the xml file where the DTD for the file resides.
In STExport you can specify simple one-line doctype specs with the following command: xml doctype '!DOCTYPE address-book SYSTEM "address-book.dtd"'
This will write the doctype specification at the top of the output file, directly after the
XML version specification.
File
You can customize the "file" tags with the following command commands: xml file "orders"
STExport will put the "<" and ">" around what is specified in the File string.
Record
You can customize the "record" tags with the following command commands:
xml record "Details"
STExport will put the "<" and ">" around what is specified in the Record string.
Example
You can enter multiple XML commands per task to set the XML options you require.
$in file1sd
$xml version "?xml version='1.0' encoding='ISO-8859-1'?"
$xml file "Orders" record "Details"
$out myfile
An example of the output generated by the above commands is as follows:
<?xml version='1.0' encoding='ISO-8859-1'?>
<Orders>
<Details>
<CITY>Los Altos</CITY>
<CREDIT-RATING>100000</CREDIT-RATING>
<CUST-ACCOUNT>4003302</CUST-ACCOUNT>
<CUST-STATUS>20</CUST-STATUS>
<NAME-FIRST>Ralph</NAME-FIRST>
<NAME-LAST>Perkins</NAME-LAST>
<STATE-CODE>CA</STATE-CODE>
<STREET-ADDRESS>Room 655</STREET-ADDRESS>
<STREET-ADDRESS>Los Altos 040033022</STREET-ADDRESS>
<ZIP-CODE>93002</ZIP-CODE>
</Details>
</Orders>
Tags
In XML the tags that surrounded the data can not have any special characters other than hyphen, underscore and period ("-","_", "."). So STExport replaces any of the invalid special characters with a "." by default.
You can change the default character to be something else with the following set command:
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$Set xmltagchar "_"
STExport will only allow the hyphen, underscore and period to be set with this command.
Quotes
All of STExport's XML command options (version, doctype, file and record) allow for a string to be passed via surrounding quotes. The quotes may be either single or double, but keep in mind that if the string is to contain double quotes, then you should surround the entire string with single quotes.
Zero Command [Z]
Specify whether leading zeros are to appear in numeric fields.
ZERO NONE | LEADING
(Default: None)
Use Zero None to force all numeric fields to have leading zeros removed. If a numeric field has implied decimal places, STExport always formats the number with at least one digit to the left of the decimal place, even if it is zero.
Use Zero Leading to force all numeric fields to be zero-filled. In this case, Sign
Leading and Sign Floating both cause the sign to appear in the same place (in front of the leading zeros).
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Example of STExport Output
Example
In this example we show you how to use Suprtool and STExport. We start with an
SQL table, identify the fields that are dates and the number of implied decimal places in other fields. We then produce a self-describing file using the dataset as input and show the default output from STExport.
The Form command displays the fields in a dataset or a self-describing file. For files, this information is stored in a file with an extension of ".sd" and is not accessible with other tools. Use the Form command to obtain the record layout of STExport input files.
Sales File
We will be formatting data from an Oracle table that has the following form:
>op oracle custdb dbpass
>sel * from sales
>form
Column Name: Oracle Type: Suprtool Type:
CUSTOMERNUM Number (8) Double
DELIVERYDATE Number (8) Double
PRODUCTNUM Number (8) Double
PRICE Number (10) Packed
PURCHASEDATE Number (8) Double
SALESQTY Number (10) Packed
SALESTAX Number (10) Packed
SALESTOTAL Number (10) Packed
Dates and Decimal Places
We use Suprtool's Define and Item commands to identify which of the fields in the sales table are dates and which fields have implied decimal places:
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>def deliv_date,DELIVERYDATE,8,display
>def purch_date,PURCHASEDATE,4,double
>def product_price,PRICE,4,double
>def sales_tax,SALESTAX,4,double
>def sales_total,SALESTOTAL,4,double
>item deliv_date ,date ,yyyymmdd
>item purch_date ,date ,yyyymmdd
>item product_price ,decimal ,2
>item sales_tax ,decimal ,2
>item sales_total ,decimal ,2
Salefile
We now produce a file called "salefile" using Suprtool's Output,Link option. The
Link option produces a self-describing file, complete with the date and decimal-place information:
>open oracle custdb dbpass
>select * from sales
>def deliv_date,DELIVERYDATE,8,display
>def purch_date,PURCHASEDATE,4,double
>def product_price,PRICE,4,double
>def sales_tax,SALESTAX,4,double
>def sales_total,SALESTOTAL,4,double
>item deliv_date ,date ,yyyymmdd
>item purch_date ,date ,yyyymmdd
>item product_price ,decimal ,2
>item sales_tax ,decimal ,2
>item sales_total ,decimal ,2
>extract customernum
>ext deliv_date
>ext PRODUCTNUM
>ext product_price
>ext purch_date
>ext SALESQTY
>ext sales_tax
>ext sales_total
>output salefile,link
>xeq
IN=8, OUT=8. CPU-Sec=1. Wall-Sec=1.
>form salefile
File: salefile (SD Version B.00.00) No linefeeds
Entry: Offset
CUSTOMERNUM I2 1
DELIV_DATE Z8 5 <<YYYYMMDD>>
PRODUCTNUM I2 13
PRODUCT_PRICE I2 17 << .2 >>
PURCH_DATE I2 21 <<YYYYMMDD>>
SALESQTY P12 25
SALES_TAX I2 31 << .2 >>
SALES_TOTAL I2 35 << .2 >>
Entry Length: 38 Blocking: 1
Notice how the Form command correctly identifies which fields are dates and which fields have implied decimal places. STExport uses this information to format the file.
STExport Output
We then use STExport to read the self-describing Salefile to produce our sample output on stdlist. To demonstrate how dates are handled, we insert a separator in each date field:
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/opt/robelle/bin/stexport
$input salefile {self-describing input file}
$date yyyymmdd "-" {dates with a dash separator}
$output * {output to stdlist}
$xeq
10020,1993-10-05,50511501,98.31,1993-10-01,0.02,27.53,224.15
10003,1993-10-15,50511501,98.31,1993-10-15,0.01,13.76,112.07
10003,1993-10-15,50512501,145.62,1993-10-15,0.01,20.39,166.00
10003,1993-10-15,50513001,192.20,1993-10-15,0.01,26.91,219.10
10016,1993-10-21,50521001,24.59,1993-10-21,0.03,10.33,84.11
10016,1993-10-21,50532001,139.85,1993-10-21,0.01,19.58,159.42
There are no byte-type fields in the input file, so all fields are converted from their internal numeric representation to a string of digits. All date fields were converted from their internal yyyymmdd format to the external yyyymmdd format with a dash separator between day, month, and year. All fields with implied decimal places have been converted with a decimal point.
Load Data Into Oracle
If you need to load the export file into an Oracle database, you can use Oracle's own
SQL*Loader. Files created with STExport can be processed immediately with
SQL*Loader. Suppose we want to load the data extracted in Salefile. We would use
STExport to format the information and store the results in Expsale.
:run stexport.pub.robelle
$input salefile {self-describing input file}
$date yyyymmdd "-" {dates with a dash separator}
$output expsales {output to a file}
$xeq
If the Oracle database resided on an HP 9000, we would need to transfer Expsale.
How you transfer the file is not important as long as it gets there in the same format, including line separators. Also note that the file should have an extension.
SQL*Loader expects a .dat extension by default.
The Oracle table should have all the necessary columns. To create a table with the fields in Salefile, you could use the following: create table sales_details (
CUST_ACCOUNT dec(8),
DELIV_DATE date,
PRODUCT_NO dec(8),
PRODUCT_PRICE dec(8,2),
PURCH_DATE date,
SALES_QTY dec(6),
SALES_TAX dec(8,2),
SALES_TOTAL dec(8,2)
) tablespace USERS;
SQL*Loader requires what is known as a control file. It contains the load specifications such as the data file, the destination table, the field delimiter, the text field delimiters and the column specifications. In this case, the control file
(expsales.ctl) looks like this:
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load data
-- Specify input datafile. dat extension is assumed. --
Infile expsales
-- Name of the table where the data is loaded. --
-- Append new rows to existing data, if any. --
Append Into Table sales_details
-- Fields are separated by commas --
Fields Terminated By ','
-- Character fields are enclosed in double-quotes --
Optionally Enclosed By '"'
-- Specify the column names as they appear --
-- in the data records. --
-- For a Date-type column, specify the input format --
-- Example: column Date "YYYYMMDD" --
(CUST_ACCOUNT,
DELIV_DATE date "YYYYMMDD",
PRODUCT_NO,
PRODUCT_PRICE,
PURCH_DATE date "YYYYMMDD",
SALES_QTY,
SALES_TAX,
SALES_TOTAL)
In its simplest form, SQL*Loader is invoked with the following command:
$ sqlload userid=username/password
control=expsales.ctl
log=expsales.log
The username and password are valid Oracle connect information. SQL*Loader reads the load specifications from the file specified in the control keyword. It writes operation information and statistics to the file specified in the log keyword. It also creates a number of files to report data problems etc. SQL*Loader has many other options to control the load task. Refer to the appropriate Oracle documentation for details.
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Limits Within STExport
Maximums
Delimiter - Maximum Length - 3 Bytes
The delimiter must appear between every field in the output record. To help avoid exceeding the maximum output record length, the maximum delimiter length is three characters.
Input File - Maximum Record Size - 4096 Bytes
We recommend that you use Suprtool's Extract command to minimize the input record size.
Input File - Maximum Fields - 255
If you must have more than 255 fields, use Suprtool's Define and Extract commands to extract several fields as one contiguous series of bytes.
Output File - Maximum Record Size - 4096 Bytes
When formatting many fields, it is possible to produce large output records. Once again, using the Extract command to minimize the size of the input records will avoid large output records.
The total length of the Heading line in the output file is also restricted to 4096 bytes.
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Welcome to Suprlink
Welcome to Suprlink
Welcome to Suprlink for HP-UX Version 4.6.01. Suprlink is a program that works with Suprtool to add "multifile" capability to Suprtool. Rather than take the regular path to multiple datasets -- random retrieval via IMAGE keys -- with its well-known performance problems, we have chosen to follow a different path: fast serial extracts plus a very efficient merge.
Summary of the Suprlink commands:
Before Input Reset =expression
Help Redo Xeq
The minimum abbreviation of each command is shown in capital letters.
Documentation
CD or Web Download
If you received a documentation CD with this version of Suprlink, you will find the documentation files on the CD. The installation program will start automatically when you insert the CD into the drive. If it does not start automatically, run
D:\setup.exe, where D is the letter assigned to your CD-ROM drive. If you do not have a documentation CD, you can download the files from the Robelle web site at http://www.robelle.com/library/manuals/ .
Printed Documentation
The latest user manuals and change notice are available in Adobe PDF format. If you do not already have the Adobe Acrobat Reader, you can get a copy from http://www.adobe.com/prodindex/acrobat/readstep.html
.
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Online Documentation in HTML Help Format
The Suprtool user manuals and change notice are available in HTML Help format.
Support for compiled HTML help (CHM files) is built into recent versions of
Windows.
Help Command
The user manual is also available to the on-line Suprlink user through the Help command. For instructions, try:
+help help
Terminology and HP-UX
Many of the terms and examples in this manual use terminology specific to MPE and
IMAGE/SQL databases. We have edited the Suprlink/UX manual to be more generic in this regard, however, some references remain for clarity.
Notation
The Suprlink documentation uses a common notation in describing all commands.
Here is a sample command definition:
Link filename [BY link-keys [FROM input-keys]]
[OPTIONAL]
1. UPPERCASE LETTERS are required elements in the command, and must be typed exactly as they appear.
Example: BY
2. Highlighted lowercase letters, underlined or italic, are "variables" to be filled in by the user. In the help file, underlining and italics are not available and variables will appear simply in lowercase.
Example: filename.
3. [] - Brackets enclose optional fields.
Example: [FROM input keys]
4. {} - Braces enclose comments in examples. Braces are allowed for comments in actual Suprlink commands.
Example: +output repts temp {produces job-temporary Output}
5. | - Up lines separate alternatives from which you will select.
Sometimes, the alternatives are shown listed on several lines.
Example: [TEMP | ERASE]
6. In examples, there is an implied carriage return at the end of each line.
Installing Suprlink
Suprlink is installed as part of the Suprtool installation process. See the "Installing
Suprtool" chapter of the Suprtool User Manual for more details of how to install both Suprtool and Suprlink.
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Hardcoded File Names and ROBELLE Variable
Some file names are hardcoded into Suprlink. This section describes the hardcoded file names that Suprlink/UX may need. Suprlink will normally look for files in the
/opt/robelle directory unless you set the ROBELLE variable.
ROBELLE Variable
Normally Suprlink looks files in the /opt/robelle directory. If you move Suprlink you must set the ROBELLE variable. For example, if you move Suprlink to the
/users/robelle directory you must set ROBELLE variable in the following manner: export ROBELLE="/users/robelle"
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Accessing Suprlink
How To Run Suprlink
To access Suprlink, type the following command:
/opt/robelle/bin/suprlink
SUPRLINK/Copyright Robelle Solutions Technology Inc. 1988-2002
(Version 4.6.01)
+
After a short pause, Suprlink will take over your terminal and print out some identifying information. You will notice that your command prompt has changed to
"+", telling you that you have made it into Suprlink. Suprlink expects you to type command lines, ending each one with Return.
How to Xeq a Suprlink Task
Normally, you enter a series of commands. These commands specify the Input file, the Output file, and the Link file name(s). Finally, you enter an Xeq or an Exit command. This begins the actual Suprlink linkage task.
If you entered the Exit command, Suprlink will finish the current task, then return you to the Operating system.
+EXIT
$
If you entered the Xeq command, Suprlink will finish the current task, then prompt you for another task. This continues until you enter the Exit command. If you wish to terminate Suprlink immediately (perhaps you are confused), enter Exit Abort. This will terminate the Suprlink program immediately, without attempting any task.
Suprtool Link Command
This command is not currently available in the HP-UX version.
Exit with Verify
This feature is not yet available in the HP-UX version.
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Using Suprlink in Batch
You normally run Suprlink as an on-line session. You type Suprlink commands on your terminal and Suprlink prints responses on your terminal. If you redirect stdin or stdlist, Suprlink assumes that it is in batch.
Suprlink in batch is almost identical to Suprlink on-line, except for answering questions. When Suprlink asks a question in batch, no one is there to answer it.
Therefore, Suprlink does not expect an answer from stdin. Suprlink assumes that you want your batch task to complete, so it always selects the option that will complete the command successfully. This is normally a "YES" answer, as in "yes, purge the file". Suprlink prints the question on stdlist, as well as the answer that it has selected for you.
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Introduction to Suprlink
How Report Programs Work
The best way to understand Suprlink is to examine the process of writing a report.
Your report program will be written in COBOL, RPG, PowerHouse, or some other language. Imagine that instead of hunting all over the database to collect your data, you just read a sorted disc file with a big record containing all the data on a given entity. For example, a sales report might read a disc file whose records consist of sales transactions plus customer information. This file has been sorted by customer number and date. If there are several sales for the same customer, the customer information is just repeated in each record. The report program reads the records, checks for level breaks, and formats and prints the records. Suprlink fits into this model of report programs.
Working from the database to the final flat file, how do we use Suprtool and
Suprlink to produce the desired result? Obviously, Suprtool can extract the desired fields from the desired records from the customer table and put them in a disc file.
And Suprtool can extract the desired fields from the customer master dataset and write them to a second disc file. What does Suprlink do?
If Suprtool sorts both files by customer, Suprlink can "link" them together, producing a third file whose composite record consists of the related fields from both files. This file is just what we need to feed into the report program.
Input Files
Only one file can have repeated records that pass through to the final file. This file is called the primary Input file. If any of the Link files contain duplicate records,
Suprlink will select one of them to link to the primary record(s). The Suprlink Output file will have no more records than the Input file.
The Input file and Link files are created with the Output xxx,Link option in Suprtool.
These files must be sorted by the same key field in ascending order.
Link Files
You can have up to seven Link files that are combined with the Input file. Suprlink merges the Input file and Link files by comparing the key fields of both files (you can optionally specify a secondary-key). The default is for Suprlink to exclude any
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Input records that do not have a matching record in all Link files. Specifying the
Optional keyword on the Link command will force Suprlink to fill the Output record with default values (spaces and zeros) when it doesn't find a match in a specific Link file. If you want to link the sales transaction to both the customer master and the salesman master, it's probably faster to use traditional methods.
Output Files
The Output file will be a self-describing file, containing data extracted from the
Input file and the Link files. Suprlink combines the Input and Link records together in a fixed way, dropping the duplicated key fields and appending the remaining fields of each file in the order specified. You control which fields occur by using the
Extract command in Suprtool, but you have no control over their order. Use the
Form command to print out the final record format so that you can prepare COBOL
COPYLIB or PowerHouse QSCHEMA definitions.
Sort Keys
The Input file and Link files must be sorted by the same key field. Their names do not have to be identical, but they must be the same type and have the same length.
Suprlink does not support real- or long-type keys.
Selection Logic
Selection logic can be tricky, since it is distributed over independent Suprtool extract tasks, the Suprlink merge phase, and the final report program.
Suprtool Selection. You can use the If command to select which records you want from each SQL table. What you cannot do in Suprtool is check a field in a related
SQL table. You do have the option to select key values from one dataset, then load them into a Table and use $lookup to select related entries in another dataset. It makes sense to use If on every SQL table, since you have another selection possibility when the files are linked. For example, you might select all customers in
California and all invoices with an amount greater than $2000.
Suprlink Selection. The Input file limits the scope of the Output file. You cannot have more Output records than you do Input records, but you can have fewer. When you do a Link to another file, you have an implied selection criterion. That is, if
Suprlink cannot find a record in the Link file with matching key value(s), the Input record is dropped from the Output file. If you have seven Link files, the Input record must match all seven or be dropped. This is the default selection logic. You can override this for any specific Link file by specifying the OPTIONAL keyword on the
Link command. Only do this is you don't care whether that data exists or not, since
Suprlink will supply default values for those Link fields.
A Link Example
You want to produce a report of all invoices over $2,000.00 for customers in
California. The customer information is in the m_customer table, and the invoice information is in the d_invoice table. Here are the steps to produce this report:
1. Select and sort the California customers into the file customer.
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2. Select and sort invoices over $2,000 into the file invoice.
3. Because there will often be more than one invoice per customer, specify the invoice file as input to Suprlink.
4. Link in the customer file.
5. Produce your report from the combined records in the output file.
>open oracle demo reader {sales database}
>select * from m_customer {select all customers...}
>if state = "CA" {...in California}
>sort custnum {sort and link key}
>output customer,link {Link output option}
>xeq
We now have a self-describing file with all the customers from California sorted by the customer number. Next we select all invoices over $2,000.00 and sort them into customer number sequence:
>select * from d_invoice {select all invoices...}
>if amount>200000 {...over $2,000.00}
>sort custnum {sort and link key again}
>output invoices,link {remember the link option}
>exit
If we specify the cust file as input, the Output file will only contain one invoice per customer. Because we want to produce a report of all the selected invoices, we specify it as the input file:
+input invoices {driving input file, custnum is the key}
+link customer {combined with customers}
+output invcust {produces the file we want}
+exit
Each record of the invcust file will have both the invoice information and the customer information for each invoice of the Input file (i.e., one record per invoice).
What happens if there is no customer record for a specific invoice? In this case, the invoice record does not appear in the Output file. To force Suprlink to include these records, use the optional keyword on the Link command:
+input invoices {sorted by custnum}
+link customer optional {don't exclude invoices if...}
+output invcust {the customer information...}
+exit {...is missing}
Performance Considerations
Select only the records you need, unless the time to load a table of desired key values, plus the time needed to do $lookup for each record, is longer than the time to extract and sort the entire dataset. Use the Sorted and Hold options of the Table command when loading a table. Because of the time needed to search a large table, it is often faster to extract all of the records and let Suprlink skip over the ones it doesn't need.
This method does a lot of sorts. Sorting time can vary depending on system load and available memory, but it increases dramatically for large records and large datasets.
You should try to use Suprtool's Extract command to reduce the record size, and consider using Suprtool's If command to reduce the number of records.
Suprlink needs enough disc space to invert a significant subset of your database, then link it into an Output file. Although all of the Suprlink files can be job temporary,
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you still need enough disc space for the original database, the final Output file, the primary Input file, and each of the Link files. One of the tradeoffs with this method is more disc space for faster elapsed time.
Another Example
From the sales records, retrieve all of the sales for October, 2000 and append the customer name, salesman code, and year-to-date sales total to the sales record (these fields are located in the customer records).
$/opt/robelle/bin/suprtool
>open oracle demo reader
>sel * from sales_detail
>extract custnum,saledate,saleamt,...
>if saledate >= 20001001 and &
> saledate <= 20001031
>sort custnum
>sort saledate
>output sales,link {creates SD file}
>xeq
>sel * from customer
>extract custnum,name
>extract salesman,ytdsales
>sort customernum
>output custs,link
>exit
$/opt/robelle/bin/suprlink
+input sales {link sales...}
+link custs {...to custs...}
+output repts {...producing REPTS!}
+xeq {...run the task}
+form repts {fields in repts}
+exit
$myprog {run program}
$rm sales {these files...}
$rm custs {...no longer needed}
$rm repts
Illegal Digits
Whenever Suprlink is processing files with packed- or zoned-decimal keys, errors can occur because of invalid digits in the keys. Suprlink reports the input and link record numbers with illegal digits and processing stops. You can use Suprtool to examine input and link records, by using record selection with Suprtool's input command. A packed-decimal number consists of nibbles (there are two nibbles in each byte). The last nibble is the sign of the number. The remaining nibbles must each contain a number in the range 0-9. A zoned-decimal number must have a valid digit in each byte and end in "0"-"9", "A"-"R", "{", or "}".
Selecting Non-Matches
Consider a common problem easily solved with Quiz from Cognos: finding all records in a file which have no corresponding records in a related file. For example, to find all records in an invoice lines file with no corresponding invoice master record, the following Quiz code could be written.
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>access lines link to header optional
>select if not record header exists
>report invoiceno of lines
>go
This small amount of code, however, can take a long time to execute, depending on the size of the Lines and Header files. A Quiz program will usually take longer as new links are added, causing the size of the record complex to grow.
Suprlink can provide the same information, possibly in a fraction of the time. The technique as applied to the same problem requires four steps:
1. Sort the Lines file by Invoiceno.
2. Add a new constant field, Linkflag, to the Header file and fill it with
"Y". Sort by Invoiceno.
3. Link the two files with Suprlink using the Optional parameter.
4. Select the record complexes where linkflag does not contain a "Y".
$/opt/robelle/bin/suprtool
>open oracle demo reader
>sel * from lines
>sort invoiceno
>output file1,link
>xeq
>sel header
>define linkflag,1,1
>extract invoiceno,linkflag="Y"
>sort invoiceno
>output file2,link
>exit
$/opt/robelle/bin/suprlink
+input file1
+link file2 optional
+output file3
+exit
$/opt/robelle/bin/suprtool
>input file3
>if linkflag <> "Y"
>extract invoiceno
>list standard
>exit
Any invoice line with a corresponding record in the invoice Header file will have a
"Y" in the linkflag field. Records failing the match will contain the default space.
Suprlink with Quiz/QTP
Quiz and QTP are part of PowerHouse, a popular fourth generation language sold by
Cognos. You can use Suprtool and Suprlink to improve the performance of
PowerHouse applications. For a complete discussion of how to use Suprtool and
Quiz together, refer to the "Suprtool with Quiz/QTP" section of the Suprtool User
Manual.
Suprlink can write to PowerHouse subfiles that have been created with Quiz or QTP.
Subfiles are "self documenting" files that contain a complete description of the file's record structure. This information is stored in user labels in the file, and is known as a "mini-dictionary." When you access the subfile in Quiz, its description is read from the mini-dictionary. You must ensure that the PowerHouse subfile description
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exactly matches the record layout of Suprlink's output file. Remember that Suprlink will drop the common "key" fields from the link files.
Step 1: Create the Subfile with QTP
Before running Suprlink, you create an empty subfile with QTP:
$rm invcust
$qtp
>access d_invoice link custnum to &
> custnum of m_customer
>subfile invcust keep size numrecs include &
> custnum, invdate, amount, invnum, &
> name, address
>set input limit 0
>go
The subfile must contain all of the fields that Suprlink will produce in the output file, with the same attributes (data-type and length) and in the same order. Use the
Include option of QTP's Subfile command to define each of the fields in the correct order.
The numrecs parameter must be replaced with the number of records that will be created by the Suprlink run. The default numrecs is 1023 when the input limit is set to 0.
Step 2: Output Erase in Suprlink
Once you have created the PowerHouse subfile, use the Erase option of Suprlink's
Output command to load the file. This will overwrite any data in the subfile, but it will not touch the PowerHouse mini-dictionary in the user labels:
+input invoices {created by Suprtool}
+link customer {sorted by custnum}
+output invcust erase {created by QTP}
+exit
Step 3: Report with Quiz
The INVCUST file contains the sorted records for the Quiz report. Quiz knows the structure of this file because of the initial QTP commands that we used to create the file. Now use Quiz to generate the report: quiz
>access *invcust
>report ...
>go
Notes on Subfiles
One of the advantages that Suprlink has over the link function in PowerHouse is that
Suprlink does not require the "key" field in the link files to be a database key.
Because Suprlink uses a serial-merge approach, its files only need to have a common field with the same data-type and length. If you do use Suprlink to link files that do not share a common database key, you need some extra steps to create the
PowerHouse subfile.
Since Suprlink cannot currently write to NM Ksam files you cannot directly write to
PowerHouse indexed subfiles. You can use Suprtool to load file to the Indexed
KSAM file.
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Defining Fields in QTP
In our example above, "custnum" can be used to link the d_invoice and m_customer tables in QTP because custnum is an index in the m_customer table. If custnum was not an index, you could try declaring the record structure for the subfile with the
QTP Define command:
$rm invcust
$qtp
>access d_invoice
>define name character size 20 = " "
>define address character size 20 = " "
>subfile invcust keep size numrecs include &
> custnum, invdate, amount, invnum, &
> name, address
>set input limit 0
>go
You must be careful to ensure that the data definitions of the Defined fields are correct. Note that you cannot assign default display specifications (such as Heading or Picture specifications) for Defined fields in QTP.
Linking Subfiles by Record Number
Another approach, which guarantees that the subfile will contain the correct data definitions and default display characteristics, is to create temporary subfiles with
QTP for each dataset, then link them together by record number:
$rm invcust
$qtp
>access d_invoice
>subfile invtemp size 1 include &
> custnum, invdate, amount, invnum
>set input limit 0
>go
>access m_customer
>subfile custtemp size 1 include &
> name, address
>set input limit 0
>go
>access *invtemp link to record 0 of *custtemp
>subfile invcust keep size numrecs include &
> custnum, invdate, amount, invnum, &
> name, address
>set input limit 0
>go
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Suprlink Commands
General Notes
When you run Suprlink, it prompts for commands on stdlist with a "+" character and reads command lines from stdin. Suprlink commands contain a command name followed by one or more parameters, and are patterned after the same commands in
Suprtool.
In this chapter, we describe the Suprlink commands in alphabetic order. Following each command name in brackets is the minimal abbreviation for the command. For example: [I] for Input and [L] for Link.
Abbreviating
You may shorten the command name to the first letter of the command name.
+v {verify}
+x {xeq}
Uppercase or Lowercase
You may enter the letters in either uppercase or lowercase, because Suprlink upshifts everything in the command line except literal strings within quotes ("abc"). These two commands are identical:
+EXIT
+exit
Continuation
The maximum physical command line is 256 characters. You may enter commands on multiple input lines by putting an "&" continuation character at the end of the line. The maximum total command length is 256 characters. The most common reason for continuing commands is to specify a lengthy Link command with secondary keys.
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+input students
+link majors by ssn cmaj from &
ssn curmajor
+output outfile
+exit
Comments on Command Lines
Comments may appear at the end of any command line, when they are surrounded by braces. Many of the examples in this manual show comments at the end of each command line. You can enter a comment as the only item in a Suprlink command line. When continuing command lines, the comment can appear before or after the continuation character.
+ {link customer records to invoices. }
+input invoices {sorted by custnum}
+link customer {combined with customers}
+output invcust {produces the file we want}
+exit
HP-UX Commands
Suprlink also accepts HP-UX commands, with or without an exclamation mark or colon.
+!ls
+ls
For commands that are the same in both Suprlink and HP-UX, Suprlink only executes the HP-UX command if you type the exclamation mark (or colon). For example:
+set {you get Suprlink Set command}
+!set {you get HP-UX Set command (ksh)}
Suprlink/UX executes and HP-UX command (e.g., ls) or script file.
File Names
Suprlink's Input, Link and Output commands accept any valid HP-UX file name. File names are currently limited to a maximum of 240 characters.
Calculator
Any command line beginning with an equal sign (=) is treated as a calculator expression. This feature can be used to compute blocking factors and do other calculations without the need of an electronic calculator.
You can obtain a short description of the calculator by entering the following:
=? {? gives help}
{prints a summary of = functions}
For a detailed description of the calculator and its options, see the Suprtool manual.
Control-Y
You can interrupt a Suprlink task with the Control-Y key (hold down Control while striking Y). Suprlink responds by telling you how far it has gotten (IN=, OUT=,
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etc.), and asking if you wish to stop. Hit the Return key to continue or type YES to stop the task.
If Control-Y has no effect, then try Control-C which is the default interrupt setting for HP-UX. See the section on "Control Characters and stty" in the "Running
Suprtool Under HP-UX" chapter for notes on how change this default.
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Before Command [B]
Repeat any combination of the previous 1000 command lines, with or without editing.
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[ ALL | @ ]
BEFORE [ start [ / stop ] ]
[ string ]
[ ALL | @ ]
(Default: redo previous line)
(BQ=redo without change)
The Before command allows you to modify the commands before it executes them.
If you don't need to change them, use BQ or Do.
The Before command uses Qedit-style Control characters for modifying the commands. The default mode is to replace characters. To delete use Control-D, and to insert use Control-B. If you prefer HP-style modify (D, R, I, and U), use the Redo command instead of Before.
Examples
+ll *.fd {".fd" is a typo}
*.fd not found
+Before {redo most recent command} ll *.fd {last command is printed}
s {you enter changes to it} ll *.sd {the edited command is shown}
{you press Return}
+listredo -10/
+before 5 {redo 5th command in stack}
+bef 8/10 {redo 8th through 10th}
+b ls {redo last ls command}
+b ls * {redo "ls *" command}
+b @* {redo last containing "*"}
+before -2 {redo command before previous}
+before -5/-2 {redo by relative lines}
Modify Operators
If you wish to change any characters within the line, the modify operators are the regular Control Codes used in Qedit:
• Any printing characters replace the ones above.
• Assuming that you have changed the HP-UX default of your EOF key,
Control-D plus spaces deletes columns above.
• Control-B puts you into "insert before" mode.
• Control-A starts appending characters at the end of line.
• Control-A, Control-D, plus spaces, deletes from the end.
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• Control-T ends Insert Mode, allowing movement to a new column.
• Control-G recovers the original line.
• Control-O specifies "overwrite" mode (needed for spaces).
Persistent Redo
Redo commands can be saved in a permanent file and can therefore be used from another session. You can use the Set redo command to specify a filename to save your redo commands. Please see the Set Redo command for details.
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Do Command [DO]
The Do command will repeat (without changes) any of the previous 1000 commands.
[ ALL | @ ]
DO [ start [ / stop ] ]
[ string ]
[ ALL | @ ]
(Default: repeat the previous command)
Commands are numbered sequentially from 1 as entered and the last 1000 of them are retained. Use the :Listredo command to display the previous commands. You can repeat a single command (do 5), a range of commands (do 5/10) or the most recent command whose name matches a string (do list). If you want to modify the commands before executing them, use Redo or Before.
Examples
+listredo
+do {do previous command again}
+do 39 {do command line 39 again}
+do 5/8 {do command lines 5 to 8 again}
+do link {do most recent Link command}
+do grep {do last starting with "grep"}
+do grep job {do last "grep job" command}
+do @job {do last containing "job"}
+do -2 {do command before previous}
+do -7/-5 {do by relative line number}
+do 5/ {do command lines 5 to last}
Notes
The Do command cannot be abbreviated.
Persistent Redo
Redo commands can be saved in a permanent file and can therefore be used from another session. You can use the Set redo command to specify a filename to save your redo commands. Please see the Set Redo command for details.
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Exit Command [E]
Exit Suprlink in one of three ways. By default, perform the current linkage task, if any, then leave Suprlink. Users are often frustrated when they exit Suprlink after specifying part of a task and Suprlink starts processing the task. Use the Abort or
Suspend options to exit Suprlink conveniently without executing the current task.
EXIT [ ABORT | SUSPEND | XEQ ]
EXIT [ ABORT | SUSPEND | XEQ ]
(Default: XEQ)
Typing Exit with no parameters means Exit Xeq. Suprlink recognizes special command names which specify both the Exit command and an exit option (e.g., ES means Exit Suspend).
Exit Abort [EA]
Cancels the current operation and terminates Suprlink. The Exit command without parameters always attempts to perform the task currently specified, while Exit Abort cancels the task and terminates immediately.
Examples
+:comment. You began to specify a linkage, stopped for
+:comment. coffee, and decided to cancel the task
+:comment. upon your return.
+input invoices
... coffee break ...
+exit abort {cancel linkage and terminate}
Exit Suspend [ES]
This feature is not currently available in Suprlink/UX.
Exit Xeq [EX]
To perform the current linkage task, you can either use Xeq (which leaves you inside
Suprlink, ready to define another task) or Exit Xeq (which leaves Suprlink when done with the task).
Exit Xeq is the default option (i.e., specifying exit starts execution of the current task).
Examples
/opt/robelle/bin/suprlink
+exit {no input was specified}
End Of Program
/opt/robelle/bin/suprlink
+input invoices
+link customer
+output invcust
+exit {link and stop}
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Form Command [F]
Display the fields in a self-describing file.
FORM [filename]
If no file name is specified, the fields in the input file are displayed. The display shows the field type and field length in IMAGE notation. An I1-field is a single integer. Packed-fields show the number of nibbles (subtract one to obtain the number of digits). Byte and zoned-decimal fields show the byte length.
When showing the form of a self-describing file, Suprlink shows the byte offset of each field after the subcount, type, and sublength. The first field always appears at offset one.
There are two types of self-describing files. One type is produced with Suprtool's
Query output option. You produce the other type with the Link output option. The
Form command shows the internal self-describing version number, enabling you to tell the difference.
A.00.00 - Query Output Option
Compound fields have a question mark for the type, and the length is the number of bytes in the field. Sort information about the file is missing. Here is an example form listing:
+form custfile
File: custfile (SD Version A.00.00) Has linefeeds
Entry: Offset
CHARACTER X5 1 {length is five bytes}
ZONED Z5 6 {room for five digits}
INTEGER I1 11 {single integer}
DOUBLE I2 13 {double integer}
PACKED P6 17 {room for five digits}
QUAD I4 20 {eight-byte integer}
REPEATINT ?6 28 {compound field}
LOGICAL K1 34 {single logical}
DBLLOG K2 36 {double logical}
Entry Length: 44 Blocking: 1
B.00.00 - Link Output Option
These self-describing files contain information about how the file is sorted.
Compound fields are handled correctly, so the Form command shows compound fields just as you would see them in IMAGE. The Item command in Suprtool identifies the date format of an item. The Link output option saves the date format and any decimals as part of the field description:
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+form datafile
File: datafile (SD Version B.00.00) Has Linefeeds
Entry: Offset
CHARACTER X5 1 <<Sort #1 >>
REPEATINT 3I1 6 {compound field}
DATE J2 12 <<YYYYMMDD>>
DOLLAR P6 16 << .2 >>
Entry Length: 16 Blocking: 1
Notes
If you do an ll datafile* it should show another file with a ".sd" extension. This file contains a description of its own record structure; this allows you to refer to the field names and Suprlink can compute where they occur in the record.
Formout File
The Form command writes all output to the file Formout. This file defaults to
$stdlist. You can redirect this file to a line printer or a disc drive. If you redirect the
Formout file to a disc file, Suprlink assumes a temporary file by default.
+:file formout;dev=lp
+form custfile {writes to line printer}
+:file formout;dev=disc
+form invfile {writes to temporary file}
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Help Command [H]
Show what commands and options are available in Suprlink.
HELP [ command | keyword [ ,option ] ]
(Default: browse through the entire help file)
Command Help
If you specify any parameters, Help first assumes that you want help on a specific
Suprlink command. If you know the structure of the help file, you can specify one of the keywords under the command name.
+help link {help on the Link command}
+help link,notes {notes section of the Link command}
Keyword Help
If we cannot find any help in the "Commands" section of the help file, we assume that you specified one of the outer-level keywords in the help file. To see this list of keywords, type help with no parameters. You will see a short introduction to
Suprlink and then a list of keywords. You can specify any of these keywords on the
Help command. You can also specify a subkeyword.
+help before,example {example section of Before command}
Quick Help - HQ
HQ asks Suprlink to look under the keyword QUICK in the help file. QUICK contains the text from the Suprlink Quick Reference Guide, offering the experienced user a quick review of the syntax of any command.
+hq input {quick description of Input}
+hq commands {quick list of command names}
Notes
If no parameters are specified, Help allows you to browse through the help file,
/opt/robelle/help/suprlink. The Help command uses the Qhelp subsystem from the
QLIB. For "help in help", type "?" when you see the Qhelp prompt character ("?").
The help file is organized into levels. To go back to the previous level, press Return.
Press F8 to exit the Qhelp subsystem and return to Suprlink.
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Input Command [I]
Specifies the primary input source and the name of the key field by which it is sorted.
INPUT filename [ BY key-field ]
There can be only one Input file per linkage task, but up to seven Link files. The
Input file should be created by Suprtool using the Output-Link option and must be sorted by key-field. The key field can be any type, except for Real or Long. The primary Input file may have more than one record per key value, and each record may appear in the Output file.
It is best to have Suprtool Extract only the fields you will actually need, since if any of the Suprtool extracts result in enormous Output files, the time to do the sort may be prohibitive.
The BY-clause is only necessary when the Input file has been created using the
Suprtool Output-Query option instead of the Output-Link option. Output-Link adds the sort field information to the self-describing file, so that you do not have to specify it in a BY clause.
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Link Command [L]
Link the Input file to another Link file, maximum of seven input files.
[OPTIONAL | REQUIRED]
LINK filename [BY link-keys [FROM input-keys]]
[OPTIONAL | REQUIRED]
(Default: REQUIRED)
File Name
The Link file should be created by Suprtool with the Output,Link option; it should only contain the fields that you actually need in the final report, plus any sort fields.
If you do an ll file* of the file, it should show another file with a ".sd" extension.
This file contains a description of its own record structure; this allows you to refer to the field names and Suprlink can compute where they occur in the record. For example:
+input sales {Sales is sorted by custno}
+link custfile {key is custno}
+link addrfile
+output custsale {link three files...}
+exit {...into custsale}
Link Keys
Suprlink allows files to be linked by up to two keys, a primary and a secondary key field.
By default, Suprlink assumes that the key field to the Link file is the same key field specified for the Input file. If the Link key field is different from the Input key field, use the BY-clause to specify the correct key field:
+input customer {key-name is custnum}
+link sales by custno {new name for the same field}
You would also use the BY-clause if the Link file was created using the Suprtool
Output,Query option instead of Output,Link.
Secondary Keys
Suppose that you are linking a master to a detail and the detail can have several entries for each master. Suprlink has an option that allows you to select which link record you want by matching a second key field in the master.
This option forces Suprlink to compare both the primary-key and the secondary-key when comparing an input record to a link record. For example,
+input students {key-name is ssn}
+link majors by ssn cmaj {Students contains cmaj}
This example says that the file Majors is sorted by ssn and may contain more than one record per student. To select the desired record for each student, Suprlink matches the students' cmaj against the cmaj in the link record.
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Secondary Input Key
It is possible that the second key field has a different name in the input file and the
Link file. The FROM-clause lets you handle this case:
+input students {key-name is ssn}
+link majors by ssn cmaj from ssn curmajor
Note that you must specify the Input file key field as part of the FROM-clause. This example is identical to the previous secondary key example, but in this case the current major field is called "curmajor" in the students file and "cmaj" in the majors file.
Optional Linkage
If there is more than one link record with the same key value, Suprlink will select the first one it finds. You can sort by another value such as date-time to force a certain record to be first. Please note that this is unlike Quiz, which does a hierarchical expansion to include every record accessed. If there are no link records for a given key value of the input file, that input record is dropped from the output file (this is the default option, REQUIRED).
To make the linkage optional, specify the OPTIONAL keyword. When you use
OPTIONAL, and Suprlink does not find a matching link record in the file, Suprlink fills in the linked fields with default values. The default for byte-type fields is spaces, for zoned-type the default is ASCII zeros "0", and for all other types the default is binary zeros. For example,
+input custfile {key-name is custno}
+link addrfile optional {don't drop customers...}
+output custaddr {...if there is no address}
+exit
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Listredo Command [LISTREDO]
The Listredo command will display any of the previous 1000 commands.
[ string ] [;REL]
[ ALL | @ ] [;UNN]
LISTREDO [ start [ / stop ] ] [;ABS] [;OUT=file]
[ string ] [;REL]
[ ALL | @ ] [;UNN]
(Default: display previous 20 commands)
(BJ and ,, are short for LISTREDO)
Commands are numbered sequentially from 1 as entered and the last 1000 are retained. You can display a single command, a range of commands, all 1000, or all the commands whose name matches the string. You can print the commands with
ABSolute line numbers (the default), RELative line numbers (-5/-4), or
UNNumbered. You can write the commands to your terminal or OUT to a temporary file. If you want to redo any of these commands, see Do, Redo, and Before.
Examples
+listredo 5
+listredo 5/10
+listredo help {print all Help commands}
+listredo -10 {print last ten commands}
+listredo ALL {print entire redo stack}
+listredo rm {print all remove commands}
+listredo rm xx {print all "rm xx" commands}
+listredo @rm {print all with "rm" anywhere}
+listredo @;rel {print ALL, relative numbers}
Saving to a File
Saving the Listredo commands to a file is not currently available in Suprlink/UX.
Notes
The Listredo command cannot be abbreviated, but BJ is accepted as a short form.
Persistent Redo
Redo commands can be saved in a permanent file and can therefore be used from another session. You can use the Set redo command to specify a filename to save your redo commands. Please see the Set Redo command for details.
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Output Command [O]
Specify the name of the output file.
OUTPUT filename [ERASE] [DATA] [LINK]
By default, the name of the output file is Output. The output file is a self-describing file, containing data extracted from the input file and the Link files. Use the Data option to make the output file a standard disc file without a corresponding .sd file.
There are two different types of self-describing files. The first type is created with
Suprtool's Output Query option. A superior form of self-describing file is produced with Suprtool's Output Link option. Suprlink creates the output self-describing file in the same format as the input file. We recommend that you use the same type of selfdescribing file for all input and link files.
Output Record Format
The record structure is determined by Suprlink, but is relatively easy to anticipate.
Suprlink starts with all of the fields of the input file, in order. For each Link file, it appends the fields of the Link-file to the Output record, in order. Suprlink drops the key fields from the Link records, since they always contain duplicated data.
If a field name (other than one of the two explicit keys) is duplicated in several datasets, it will end up duplicated in the final output file. An example would be a
Timestamp field that occurs in every SQL table. Workaround: use the Extract command from Suprtool to take out only the fields you want, or to rename duplicate fields.
You can verify the format of the Output-file using the Form command. It shows the field names, length, and structure, in order. From this display, you can generate an appropriate COPYLIB or QSCHEMA definition.
Quiz Subfiles
The Erase option is provided for Quiz users who create an empty subfile using QTP or Quiz before running Suprtool and Suprlink. See the Suprlink with Quiz/QTP section for details.
Since Suprlink cannot currently write to NM Ksam files you cannot directly write to
PowerHouse indexed subfiles. You can use Suprtool to load file to the Indexed
KSAM file.
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Redo Command [REDO]
Enables you to modify and repeat any of the previous 1000 command lines.
[ ALL | @ ]
REDO [ start [ / stop ] ]
[ string ]
[ ALL | @ ]
(Default: redo the previous command)
The Redo command allows you to modify the commands before it executes them. If you don't need to change them, use the Do command. Commands are numbered sequentially from 1 as entered and the last 1000 are retained. Use the :Listredo command to display the previous commands. You can redo a single command, a range of commands, or the most recent command whose name matches a string.
The Redo command uses MPE-style editing logic (D, I, R, U and >). The default mode is to replace characters. To delete, type DDDD under the characters to be removed. To insert, type I under the insertion spot, then the new characters. To undo your changes, type U. To append to the end of the line, use >xxx. To delete from the end of the line, use >DD. To replace at the end of the line, use >Rxxx. And to erase the rest of the line, use D>. If you prefer Qedit-style editing (Control-D, etc.), use the
Before command instead of the Redo command.
Examples
+ll *.fd {".fd" is not spelled right}
*.fd not found
+redo {redo most recent command} ll *.fd {last command is printed}
s {you enter changes to it} ll *.sd {the edited command is shown}
{you press Return}
+listredo all
+redo 5 {redo 5th command in stack}
+redo {redo previous command}
+redo -2 {redo command before previous}
+redo 8/10 {redo 8th through 10th}
+redo -10/ {redo -10 through last}
+redo rm {redo last rm command}
+redo rm temp {redo last "rm temp"}
+redo @temp {redo last containing "temp"}
Persistent Redo
Redo commands can be saved in a permanent file and can therefore be used from another session. You can use the Set redo command to specify a filename to save your redo commands. Please see the Set Redo command for details.
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Reset Command [R]
Cancel the current linkage task.
RESET
RESET
Reset closes the current Input-file and any Link files, then resets the output file name to Output. This is actually a Reset All command; you cannot reset particular commands as you can do in Suprtool. If you try to reset an individual command,
Suprlink prints a warning.
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Set Command [S]
Enables or disables certain operating options within Suprlink. These options are not reset by Xeq or Reset commands.
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SET [MAPPED ON|OFF]
[REDO filename]
[STATISTICS ON|OFF]
[VARSUB ON|OFF]
Mapped
SET MAPPED ON | OFF
MAPPED has no effect within Suprlink/UX.
Redo
SET REDO filename
(Initially: unnamed temporary file)
Commands entered at the Suprlink prompt are saved in something called the redo stack. You can recall commands from the redo stack by using other commands such as Before, Do and Redo. By default, the redo stack is stored in a temporary file and discarded as soon as you exit. This temporary stack is not preserved across Suprlink invocations.
The new Set Redo command assigns a permanent file as the redo stack, allowing the stack to become available for future Suprlink invocations. For example, to assign the
Myredo file as a persistent redo stack, enter
+set redo myredo
If the file does not exist, Suprlink creates it. Otherwise, Suprlink uses the existing file. All subsequent commands are written to the persistent redo stack. The setting is valid for the duration of the Suprlink session. As soon as you exit Suprlink, the setting is discarded. Next time you run Suprlink, you will get the temporary stack.
If the file name is not qualified, the redo stack is created in the cyrrent working directory. This may be desirable if you want to have separate stacks. If you want to always use the same persistent stacks, you should qualify the name.
The Verify command shows which stack is currently in use. If it shows
<temporary>, it means Suprlink is using the default stack. Anything else is the name of the file used on the Set Redo command.
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Concurrency
When Suprlink uses the default temporary stack, it is only accessible to that particular instance of Suprlink. You can run as many Suprlink instances as you need and each one gets its own redo stack. With temporary stacks, you will never get into concurrency problems.
If you start using a persistent redo stack, however, you might start running into concurrency problems. A persistent redo stack can only be used by one Qedit instance at a time. If you try to use a persistent redo stack that is already in use, you will get the following message:
+set redo myredo
The redo file is already in use.
Unable to open file for REDO stack
In this situation, Suprlink continues to use the redo stack active at the time and lets you continue working as normal.
Qedit can also have permanent redo stacks. To prevent products from writing to each other's stack, it is advisable to have separate stacks for each product by giving them different file names.
For example, if you use set redo myredo you will have a redo stack called Myredo for your Suprlink commands. If you exit
Suprlink, then run Qedit and supply the same Set Redo command, your Qedit commands will be written to the same file that was used for your Suprlink commands.
Statistics
SET STATISTICS ON | OFF
(Initially: OFF)
STATISTICS causes Suprlink to print statistics at the end of each task.
Varsub
SET VARSUB ON | OFF
(Initially: OFF)
Setting Variable Substitution causes Suprlink to resolve any CI variables in a command before processing.
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Use Command [U]
Specifies a file of commands to be executed as a group.
USE[Q] filename
Examples
A usefile makes your task easier by allowing common commands to be specified once in an external file. For example, the following usefile contains all the commands for creating the invcust file:
+use usecust input invoices {sorted by custnum} link customer {combined with customers} output invcust {produces the file we want} exit
Suprlink prints the lines in the usefile, including the comment lines. This allows you to include instructions and reminders in the usefile. In the example above, there were no commands for the user to enter.
Notes
Usefiles cannot be nested in Suprlink. The usefile may be any unnumbered text file or a Qedit workfile, but no more than 256 characters per record will be processed.
By default, Suprlink displays the commands in a usefile as they are executed.
Suprlink can execute commands quietly using the Useq command. For compatibility with Qedit, Useq can be abbreviated to UQ.
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Verify Command [V]
Print the definition of the current linkage task.
VERIFY
VERIFY
Verify prints the current Input, Link, and Output files; in other words, it is a Verify
All command.
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Xeq Command [X]
Perform the current linkage task.
XEQ
XEQ
Xeq checks that you have specified an input file and at least one Link file. Then it performs the linkage and creates the output file. Finally, it closes the files and resets, ready for you to specify another linkage task or Exit. If you also wish to leave
Suprlink after completing the linkage task, use Exit instead of Xeq.
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Example Suprlink Output
Example
The Form command displays the fields in a self-describing file. This information is stored in a file with an extension of ".sd" and is not accessible with other tools. Use the Form command to obtain the record layout of Suprlink output files.
The following example shows the Form command listing for an input file, a Link file, and the resulting output file. We start with an input file of invoices.
+form invoices
File: invoices (SD Version B.00.00) Has Linefeeds
Entry: Offset
CUSTNUM X8 1 <<Sort #1 >>
DELIVERED I2 9
PRODUCTNUM Z8 13
PRICE I2 21
PURCHASED I2 25
QTY I1 29
TAX I2 31
TOTAL I2 35
Entry Length: 38 Blocking: 1
Suprtool produced both the invoice and the customer file by using the Select,
Extract, and Sort commands. The invoice file was produced with Suprtool's Output
Link option. If you had used Suprtool's Output Query option, the Form command would not have printed any information about the key fields. The next listing is the customer file.
+form cust
File:cust (SD Version B.00.00) Has Linefeeds
Entry: Offset
CITY X12 1
RATING I2 13
CUSTNUM X8 17 <<Sort #1 >>
STATUS X2 25
FIRSTNAME X10 27
LASTNAME X16 37
STATE X2 53
ADDRESS 2X25 55
ZIPCODE X6 105
Entry Length: 110 Blocking: 1
The street address is a compound-field. If you had used Suprtool's Output Query option, the field would have appeared with a question mark for the data-type. In that case, you cannot use the field as a key-field in Suprlink, but the actual data in the field will be processed and linked correctly. Your final report should be able to read
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this data just as if it came from the database. We use Suprlink to combine the invoice and cust files into one Output-file:
/opt/robelle/bin/suprlink
+i invoices by custnum
+l cust
+o invcust
+e
The final Form command shows the record layout of the Output-file. You would use this file as input to your report program.
+form invcust
File: invcust (SD Version B.00.00) Has Linefeeds
Entry: Offset
CUSTNUM X8 1 <<Sort #1 >>
DELIVERED I2 9
PRODUCTNUM Z8 13
PRICE I2 21
PURCHASED I2 25
QTY I1 29
TAX I2 31
TOTAL I2 35
CITY X12 39
RATING I2 51
STATUS X2 55
FIRSTNAME X10 57
LASTNAME X16 67
STATE X2 83
ADDRESS 2X25 85
ZIPCODE X6 135
Entry Length: 140 Blocking: 1
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Limits Within Suprlink
Maximums
The various limitations of Suprlink are described here. In general you need to reduce the number or sizes of fields if you encounter any of these limits.
Input File - Maximum Record Size - 2048 Words
We recommend that you use Suprtool's Extract command to minimize the input record size.
Input File - Maximum Block Size - 4096 Words
By default, Suprtool restricts the maximum block size to 2,048 words. You can use the Set Blocksize command to increase this size up to 8192 words. If you increase the maximum block size, it is likely that Suprtool will produce an output file that
Suprlink cannot read.
Input File - Maximum Fields - 255
Suprlink restricts the number of fields per file to be 255. If you must have more fields, use Suprtool's Define and Extract commands to extract several fields as one contiguous series of bytes.
Link File - Maximum Record Size - 2048 Words
As with the input file, you should use Suprtool's Extract command to minimize the link record size.
Link File - Maximum Block Size - 2048 Words
See the description of the maximum input block size.
Link File - Maximum Fields - 255
See the description of the maximum number of input fields.
Link File - Maximum Number - Seven
Suprlink will link one input file with up to seven Link files.
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• 283
Output File - Maximum Record Size - 4096 Words
When linking many files together, it is easy to produce large output records. Once again, using the Extract command to minimize the size of the input and link records will avoid large output records.
Output File - Maximum Fields - 1023
Internal Suprlink tables that keep track of the output fields are restricted to 1023 entries.
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• Limits Within Suprlink
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Glossary of Terms
Commonly-used Terms
Batch
Suprtool operates in session mode or batch mode. In batch, any error message causes Suprtool to quit. Warning messages do not cause an abort. If an error occurs,
Suprtool returns a non-zero value as its result.
In batch mode, Suprtool does not prompt for missing information as it does in session mode. For example, if the output file is a duplicate file name, Suprtool automatically answers "yes" to the question asking you to purge the existing file.
Pseudo-Batch Tasks
During a canned on-line task, such as passing usefiles to Suprtool, you can "fool"
Suprtool into responding YES to operational questions. For example, if one of the canned tasks requires Suprtool to output myfile,erase, then Suprtool asks the question
ERASE all records from this OUTPUT file [no]?
You can avoid typing "yes" in response to this question by invoking Suprtool with:
$suprtool < filename
Blocksize
The block size of a file is the record length multiplied by the blocking factor. MPE permits block sizes up to 32,000 words, but Suprtool restricts the total block size.
When copying an MPE file, the maximum block size of either the input or output file is 14,336 words. If Suprtool detects an input or output file with a block size larger than 14,336 words, it prints one of the following error message:
The input blocksize is greater than 14336 words
The output blocksize is greater than 14336 words
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• Glossary of Terms
Calculator
Suprtool, Suprlink and Stexport and Dbedit treat any line that begins with an equal sign ("=") as an expression to be evaluated. To add two numbers together:
>=125+512
Result= 637.0
An expression consists of numbers and operators. The operators can be addition (+), subtraction (-), multiplication (*), division (/), or exponentiation (**). The value of the expression is printed immediately.
Any number can be followed by a percent sign (%). The calculator assumes that you want to qualify the number as a percentage. For example,
>=125*5%
Result= 6.25
A complete description of the Suprtool calculator is given after the description of the
Xeq command.
Control Character
You create a control character by holding down the Control key while you strike another key. "Y" plus Control generates Control-Y. These are normally nonprinting characters, but they may do things to your terminal. For example, Control-G rings the bell. For notes on how to change the HP-UX defaults, see the section on Control
Characters and stty in the "Running Suprtool Under HP-UX" chapter.
Suprtool uses control characters for a number of purposes:
In the Before command, control characters specify the edit functions: Control-D for delete, Control-B for before, etc.
Control-Y stops execution of the current Suprtool task. Suprtool prints a status report and asks if you would like to stop the operation.
Control-H causes the cursor to backspace one position in the current line.
Control-X cancels the current input line.
Control-S pauses a listing that is printing too fast for you to read.
Control-Q resumes a listing that you have paused with Control-S.
Database
A database in Suprtool/UX is an Eloquence database or an SQL database. A database is specified in the Base or Open command. Several commands (e.g., Get, Chain, or
Select) do not work until a database has been specified. Some commands only work with Eloquence databases and other commands only work with SQL databases.
An Eloquence database consists of datasets (files) which in turn consist of fields. An
SQL database consists of tables or views, and each table or view consists of columns. In Suprtool, a column name can be used anywhere that a field-name is used. The advantage of using a database is that information about the database is automatically available to Suprtool.
The Form command shows the database structure.
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual
Errors
Errors are messages printed by Suprtool indicating a fatal problem in the task which prevents it from completing. Error messages are further described in Appendix A.
Field
A field is a portion of a record. When you access an Eloquence dataset, this makes
Suprtool aware of the Eloquence fields in the dataset. When you access an SQL database with the Select command, Suprtool is aware of each column name (fields and columns are synonymous in Suprtool). The Define command allows you to define new fields or redefine existing fields to have new sizes or data-types. Use
Define to get at bytes of interest within existing fields and to give them an appropriate name. Then you can refer to the defined field in other commands (e.g.,
Extract, If, etc.). The following commands all contain a field:
>if balance>10000
>sort account
>extract a,b
Filename
A filename is any valid filename and is used in Suprtool commands to identify the input source, specify the output destination, or to specify an external file to be accessed in the Table or Use command. File names may be enclosed in quotes. The following commands all contain file names:
>input xyz
>output *out
>use supruse
>input "872xyz"
Strings
Suprtool expects all strings to be surrounded by a pair of single or double quotes (' or
"). When Suprtool knows the length of a field, it pads strings with trailing spaces.
For example,
>define long,1,125 {125 character field}
>extract long="abcef" {Suprtool adds 120 spaces}
>if long="abcde" {Suprtool checks for trailing spaces}
Suprtool accepts the null string. Suprtool pads it with spaces, so this is an easy way to see if a field is blank:
>if name = "" {if name is blank}
One problem with any tool that accepts strings is how to include a quote mark inside the string. Suprtool offers two solutions:
1. Use the opposite quote mark (e.g., "don't").
2. Whenever two quote marks appear in a string, they are treated as a single quote
(e.g., 'don''t').
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Subscript
A subscript is used to specify one-of-many fields in a repeated item. Within
Eloquence it is possible to specify repeated fields. For example: costs, 5J2;
The item COSTS consists of five double integers. You select one element of a compound field by specifying a subscript in parentheses (the first element is 1, not
0). For example, if you wanted to select the input records where the second cost was greater than 10000, you would use:
>if costs(2) > 10000
The (2) portion of the command is the subscript. The default subscript is the first sub-item for Total, Define, Sort, and If, but the entire compound item for Extract.
Table does not allow subscripts -- it always uses (1). The If command has another syntax, using up to three subscripts, allowing you to refer to subfields without Define
(see the If command for details).
Tables
Tables are created with the Table command and they are used for testing in the If and
Chain commands. Tables are used by the $lookup function of the If command. Use tables when you wish to check a data field for many different test values. You may also use tables to specify the records to search for with the Chain command.
Table can also mean a table from an SQL database.
Warnings
Warnings are messages produced by Suprtool to let you know about nonfatal conditions that might affect your task. Some common warning messages and their meanings are described in Appendix A.
Yes or No
When Suprtool asks a question that requires a YES or NO answer, "Y", "OUI", "JA", and "SI" are accepted as "YES", and any other answer is considered "NO".
Special Characters
Special Characters
Certain non-alpha and non-numeric characters like > and : have special meaning within Suprtool. See the descriptions that follow. As well, the term "special" designates a class of characters in the If command.
* Means $Stdinx / $Stdlist
* in the Input command means to read input from $stdinx (MPE only). * in the
Output command means to write the output to $stdlist.
>input * {MPE only}
>output *
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• Glossary of Terms
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= Means "Equals" or Calculate
= in the If command means "EQUALS":
>if customer = "40832"
= in commands means calculate something:
=10+25
Result= 35.0
= in the Output command means to write the sorted input file back into itself.
>input myfile; key 1,10
>output=input {MPE only}
< Means "Less Than"
< in the If command means is one field "less than" another field or constant value:
>if balance < 10000
By combining < and =, you get "less than or equals":
>if balance <= 10000
> Means "Greater Than" or "Enter A Command"
> is used for two purposes in Suprtool:
As the Suprtool prompt character (e.g., >Input actrec)
To mean greater than in an If command (e.g., if balance>10000). Combining > and
=, gives >= for "greater than or equal to".
<> Means "Not Equals"
In the If command, use the two characters <> to mean "not equals":
>if status <> "01"
== Means "Matches Pattern"
In the If command, use the two characters == when you want to check a field for a pattern of characters. For example, to select records where the customer name contains the word "THOMPSON" somewhere, use:
>if name == "@THOMPSON@"
>< Means "Mismatches Pattern"
In the If command, use the two characters >< when you want to select records that fail to match a pattern of characters:
>if address >< "@CANADA@"
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• Glossary of Terms
@ Means "Match Anything" in a Pattern
The At-Sign character (@) is used in patterns to indicate that Suprtool should accept anything in that position. For example:
>if name == "@ROBERT@"
The @ matches <null> ("ROBERT" is a valid match); it matches one character
("ROBERTA" is a valid match); it matches multiple characters ("ROBERT M.
GREEN" and "The ROBERT E. LEE" are valid matches).
# Means Number (in Patterns) or Prompt Character for the Edit Command
# is used in patterns to match a single numeric character:
>if type=="REC##" {look for "REC" followed by 2 digits}
# is used by the Edit command on MPE to prompt for commands:
>edit {MPE only}
#list d-inventory
# is used in the Get and Input commands to read every n-th record
? Means Alphanumeric (in Patterns)
? is used in patterns to match a single alphabetic or numeric character:
>if type=="BASE??"{look for "BASE" plus 2 alphanumerics}
& Means Escape (in Patterns) or Continue
Command Line
& is used in patterns to match one of the special pattern characters. For example, the
#-character matches a single numeric character. If you need to look for the #character itself, you would specify &# in the pattern:
>if type=="REC&#" {look for "REC" followed by "#"}
& is used to continue a command line. You may enter commands on multiple input lines by putting an "&" continuation character at the end of the line:
>if status="20" and & {continue the If command}
state="AZ","CA","OR" {select several states}
: Means O/S Commands or Bit Selection
Colon (:) at the start of a command line indicates an operating system command:
>:listf
>:ls
Colon (:) is used in the If command for bit selections:
>define bitfield,1,2,logical
>if bitfield.(4:2)=3
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual
! Means O/S Commands
! at the start of a command line indicates an operating system command. This only works on Suprtool/UX.
>!du
>!ls
; Means Multiple Commands
Semicolon (;) is used to string several Suprtool commands together on a single line:
>input a;output b;xeq {complete "task" is in one line}
, Means a List
Comma (,) in Suprtool commands is used to separate parameters:
>base actrec.data,3 {open the database exclusively}
>key 1,4,double {specify a double-integer key}
>if acct=764523,456732,98765
Commas are optional in some Suprtool commands (e.g., Output), but are required in others (e.g., Extract).
, is the abbreviation for the Redo command.
,. is the abbreviation for the Do command.
,, is the abbreviation for the Listredo command.
" or ' Means String
Quotes (" or ') are the string delimiters in Suprtool (IF NAME="BOB"). Strings that start with " must end with ".
>if name='BOB' {' is the string delimiter here}
( Means Start Parameter
Left parenthesis "(" is used to specify a subscript (see subscript below) or to select a specific range of input record numbers. Left parenthesis always comes with a right parenthesis.
>input actrec.data(10/20) {choose records 10 through 20}
>total budget(2) {total second repeated field}
) Means End Parameter
Right parenthesis ")" is used to complete a subscript or a selected range of record numbers. Right parenthesis always comes with left parenthesis.
% Means Percentage
In the Numrecs command, use % to indicate the number of output records as a percentage of the input file size.
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• 291
>numrecs 10%
/ Means Range of Records
Slash (/) in the Input and Get commands means a range of record numbers.
>input cat.dog.mouse(1000/2000)
\ Means Range of Fields
Backslash (\) in the Extract command means a range of fields.
>extract account \ rating
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• Glossary of Terms
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Index
'
' means string 291
!
! for HP-UX commands 291
! for O/S commands 291
"
" means string 291
"closed" tables 171
#
# as the Dbedit prompt character 290
# matches number 290
# means every n-th record 100, 121, 290
$
$abs function 92, 109
$atoe, Extract function 95
$date function 88, 113
$days 115
$days function 88
$etoa, Extract function 95
$file, Total command 175
$invalid 50, 114
$lookup function 105
$lower 94, 112
$ltrim 94, 112
$null file 131, 145, 146
$read function 118
$rtrim 94, 112
$signed function 94
$stddate 88, 114
$stdinx file 288
$stdlist file 140, 288
$today function 87, 114
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual
$trim 94, 112
$truncate function 92, 109
$upper 93, 112
%
% means percentage 291
&
& continuation character 259, 290
& means escape (pattern) 290
(
( means start parameter 291
)
) means end parameter 291
*
* means $stdinx / $stdlist / file command 288
*, file name 33
,
, means a list 291
/
/ means range of records 100, 121, 292
:
: for O/S commands 290
: for shell commands 30
?
? (prompt for database password) 63
? means alphanumeric (pattern) 290
@
@ matches anything 290
\
\ means range of fields 89
^
^ means character constant 87, 106
Index
• 293
{
{ start command line comment 197, 260
}
} end command line comment 197, 260
<
< means less than 289
<> means not equal to 289
=
= means calculator 289
= means equal to 289
= set name parameter 96, 289
== means matches pattern 289
>
> changing the prompt character 166
> is the prompt character 289
> means greater than 289
>< means doesn't match pattern 289
4
4GLs 44
A
A4-size paper 133 aammdd date format 50, 124 abbreviating commands 59, 197, 259
Abort option on Exit 82, 207, 265 absolute field definition 69 absolute value function 92, 109 accuracy in numeric expressions 109
Add command 62
Add Dates 89 adding records to a dataset 146
Allbase applications 36
Allbase database 139 alphanumeric string test 111 alternate values 105, 171 alternatives to the If command 103
AND operator 104 appending, Hpmodify 149
APS, date format 124 arithmetic expressions 90, 108 arithmetic trap 187
Arithmetic, Set option 156 ascending order 128, 169
ASCII option 23, 142
ASK MANMAN date selection 124
294
• Index
ASK option 142 asterisk see * at sign (@) in patterns 290 attached printer 136
B backslash 292
Base command 63
Base command, default mode 164 base name parameter 63, 146 batch 29, 192, 250, 285 batch passwords 63
Before command 65, 199, 262 bit extracts 107 block size 285
Blocksize, Set option 156
BOT and BACKSPACE error 161
Bourne shell 27 braces 197, 260
Buffer, Set option 156
BY-part of the Link command 270 byte fields, comparing 110 bytelen parameter 69, 128 byteposition parameter 69, 128
C
-c cmdstring option 29
C shell 27
Calculator 183, 198, 260, 286
Calendar intrinsic, date format 124
CGI script 220
Chain command 67 chained access 67 character constants 87, 106
Chronos 125 code overflow error 119
Cognos, date fields 124 colon 60, 198, 260, 290 column headings, List command 24
Columns command 201 combining commands on same line 59 comma 291 command line 259 commands 194 commands, formatting 194 commands, multiple 59 comments 197, 260 comparing strings as numbers 13 compound items 85, 169 configuring Suprtool 29 constants 85, 106 constants in arithmetic expressions 91, 93 constants in the output file 85 continuing commands 259
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual
control break 176 control characters 286
Control-D in modify 29
Control-Y 61, 198, 260 conventions 3, 190, 246 convert from binary to ASCII 20
Converting dates 50 copying to another database 146 count duplicate records 78 count parameter 100, 121 count qualifying records 145
Count, output restrictions 80
D data conversion 94
Data option 141, 224, 273 data overflow error 118 database parameter 286 database, closing 151 database, open mode 164 database, opening 63 database, output 146 database, password 63, 146 dataset, end-of-file 159 dataset, highwater mark 159 dataset, input 67, 100 dataset, output 146 data-types 70, 193 data-types, Oracle 37
Date command 202
Date command, invalid dates 203
Date command, separator character 202 date constants 113 date format in List 134, 162 date format, Date command 202 date function of Extract 88 date function of If 113 date limits 89, 117, 123
Date option 160 date selection 113 date selection with ASK MANMAN 124
Date, Set List 162
Date, Set option 157, 158 dates in the output file 87, 88 dates, defining 122 dates, relative 113 days function 88, 115
DBCONTROL intrinsic 159 ddd dates 125 ddd, date format 125
Decimal command 204 decimal places 20, 125 decimal places, Chain command 67 decimal places, constant values 126 decimal places, defining 122
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual
decimal places, Extract command 86 decimal places, If command 108 decimal places, List command 131 decimal places, Table command 172 default field filling in Suprlink 271 default processing 83
Defer, Set option 159 deferred output in IMAGE 159
Define command 69, 178 definition parameter 69 delete all records warning 74
Delete command 74, 163 deleting duplicate records 79 deleting entries 74 deleting entries, recovery 74 delimited output files 43, 143
Delimiter command 205
Delimiter, maximum length 243
Desc parameter 128, 169 descending order 128, 169 differences, MPE vs. HP-UX 32 disc space, reduced 138 display constants 86 display fields, maintaining the sign 94
Display option 142 division by zero 92, 109
Do command 76, 206, 264 double quotes 225 double-sided printing 133 downshifting strings 94
Dumponerror, Set option 159
Duplicate and non-SD files 79
Duplicate command 77 duplicate field names 273 duplicate keys, order of sort 43 duplicate output file 32 duplicate records 77, 146 duplicates, removing 77 duplicates, saving 77 dynamic dataset expansion 97, 98 dynamic Web pages 215
E
EBCDIC conversions 95
Edit command 81
EDSdate 124
Else clause of the IF command 103 end-of-file, IMAGE 159 endrecord parameter 100, 121
Eofread, Set option 159 equal to sign 286, 289
Erase option of Output 256, 273 erasing files 140 error block size 285 error messages in Suprtool 187, 287
Index
• 295
error, code overflow 119 error, data overflow 118 escape character 106
Euro currency symbol 87 example of Suprlink 252 exclam 198 exclamation mark 260
Exit command 82, 182, 207, 235
Exit command, Suprlink 265, 280 exit with verify 30, 249 exiting from batch jobs 82
Export command 84
Extract command 22, 85
Extract command, decimal places 86 extracting a range 89 extracting bits 95 extracting dates 87 extracting records 103
F field parameter 69, 85, 175, 287 field type 128
Fieldname, Heading command 211 file name parameter 120, 140 file names, hardcoded 31, 191, 247 file system error 187
Filecode, Set option 159 filename parameter 287 filling unmatched link fields 271 finding invalid dates 114
Firstrec, Set option 160 fixed columns 225 fixed-length, output file 201
Floating command 209 floating point, classic 32 floating sign 231 floating-point numbers 209
Form command 210, 266
Form command, default 99
Form command, keywords 99 formatting commands 194
Formout file 267 four-digit years 46
FROM-part of Link command 271
G
Get command 100 greater than (>) 289
H
Heading command 211 heading, HTML option 215 heading, maximum length 243
296
• Index
Help command 102, 213
Help command, Suprlink 268
highlights 5 highwater mark, reading to 159 holding tables for re-use 173
HPCalendar, date 125
HPCalendar,date format 124
Hpmodify editing, examples 149
HP-UX commands 60, 198, 260
HP-UX vs. MPE 32
HTML command 214
HTML files, maximum size 214
I
IEEE numbers 209
If $lookup 105
If command 103
If command too long, use $read 118
If command too long, use Table 171
If command, combining with Chain 68
If command, decimal places 108
If command, prompting for values 119
Ifcheck, Set option 160
Ignore, Set option 160 illegal digits (packed or zoned) 254
IMAGE, end-of-file 159 initial command line 29 initializing a field 85 input choices 35
Input command 120, 222, 269 input file 193 input file, maximum block size 283 input file, maximum fields 243, 283 input file, maximum record length 243, 283 input files 251 input key fields 222, 269 input, from Stdlist 33 input, line feeds 32 installing STExport 190 installing Suprlink 246
Interactive, Set 160 interrupt 198, 260 introduction to STExport 193 introduction to Suprlink 251 invalid dates 50, 114, 203
ISO-8859-1 characters, HTML output 215
Item command 122, 160, 178
J
Julian dates 125
Julian day number 88
JulianDay data format 124
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual
K
Key command 128 key fields, input file 222, 269 key fields, link file 270
Key option 141 keys 252
Korn shell 27
KSAM files 120
KSAM, order of sort 43
L labelled tapes 161 landscape output 162
LaserJet 132, 162 leading sign 231 less than (<) 289 limits within Suprlink 283
Limits, Set 161 line feeds 32, 144, 224
Link command 130, 249, 270
Link file, maximum block size 283
Link file, maximum fields 283
Link file, maximum number of 283
Link file, maximum record length 283 link key fields 270
Link option 141 linking files 251 list clears screen 133
List command 131 list device 135
List, Char option 131
List, Column Headings 135
List, Date default 162
List, Date option 134
List, Decimal option 131
List, Duplex option 133
List, Heading option 135
List, Hex option 131
List, Leftjustnum option 132
List, Noname option 132
List, Norec option 132
List, Noskip option 132
List, Octal option 131
List, Oneperline option 132
List, Record option 136
List, Rightjustnum option 132
List, Standard option 134
List, Time default 163
List, Time option 134
List, Title option 133 listing 22 listing formats 131 listing one per line 132 listing with subheadings 135
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listing without field names 132 listing, producing simple reports 134 listing, suppressing blank lines 132
Listredo command 137, 223, 272 literals in the output file 85
Lock, Set option 163 locking, IMAGE 163 long expressions 118
Lotus 1-2-3 143 low values 106 lower-case 94, 112
LP device 135
M
MACS, date format 124 mailing labels 24 manual for Suprlink 190, 246 mapped file access in Suprlink 276
Mapped, Set option 276 master dataset expansion 98 match pattern 289 maximum block size in Suprtool 285 maximum delimiter length 243 maximum heading length 243 maximum input block size 283 maximum input record length 243, 283 maximum link block size 283 maximum link fields 283 maximum link files 283 maximum link record length 283 maximum output fields 284 maximum output record length 243, 284 maximum size, HTML files 214
MDX 98 means range of fields 292 missing comma, error 91, 93 mixed case comparisons 112 mode parameter 63, 146 modulo operator 90, 108
MPE commands, disabling access 161
MPE vs. HP-UX 32
MPE, restricting 161 multidataset access 2 multiple commands per line 59, 291 multiple search values 171
N native language support 164 negative value 94 news memos 4
NLS option, Set command 164 no quotes 225
NOLF 144 nonprinting characters 106
Index
• 297
non-SD Files and duplicate 79 not equal to (<>) 289
NOT operator 104 null values 106
Num option 141
Num,Data option 141
Num,Key option 141
Num,Query option 142 number sign (#) in patterns 290 numeric bytes, Suprtool 108 numeric constants 106 numeric expressions 90, 107 numeric justification 132 numeric string test 111 numeric truncation 109
Numrecs command 138
O
O/S commands 60
-oc option 30 offset parameter 70
Open command 139 optional command name 129 optional Link option 271
OR operator 104
Oracle applications 37
Oracle database 139
Oracle data-types 37
Oracle date format 125
Oracle dates 202
Oracle Number Conversion 38
Oracle, performance 56 out of disc space 138 outcount, default file name 30 outcount, Set Filename 31 output choices 35
Output command 140, 224, 273 output file format 201 output file name duplicated 285 output file, maximum fields 284 output file, maximum record length 243, 284 output file, Suprlink 252 output filecode 159 output format 239 output limits with Count and Total 80 output record format 281
Output, Append option 140
Output, ASCII option 23, 142
Output, ASK option 142
Output, Data option 141, 224, 273
Output, Display option 142 output, duplicate file 32
Output, Erase option 140
Output, Key option 141
Output, Link option 141
298
• Index
Output, Num option 141
Output, Num,Data option 141
Output, Num,Key option 141
Output, Num,Query option 142
Output, PRN option 143
Output, Query option 141 overpunches, not used 106
P packed constants 86 packed fields, maintaining the sign 94 packed-decimal fields 71 packed-decimal, illegal digits 254 page headings in List 133
Paradox 44 parentheses 104, 291
Parm=64 in Suprlink 249 password in batch 63 password parameter 63, 146 password upshifted 63 path, default for Suprtool 28 paths, IMAGE detail datasets 67 pattern matching 111, 164, 289, 290 pausing for user 180
PC files 43, 143
PCL option, Set List 132, 162 percent sign 286, 291 performance of STExport 194
Perl script 219
Permanent redo 166, 228, 276
Persistent redo 166, 228, 276 personal computers 43
PHdate option, Item command 124 positive value 94
PowerHouse 44
PowerHouse applications 44
PowerHouse dates 124
PowerHouse subfiles 45, 255, 273 preformatted, HTML option 214
Printdoc 190, 246
Printer Command Language 162 printer, attached to terminal 136 printing manuals 190, 246 printing reports 23
PRN option 43, 143 processing selections 35 progress messages 165 prompt character 289
Prompt, Set option 166 prompting using Quiz 46
Prose program 190, 246 pseudo-batch tasks 285
Put command 146, 163
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Q
Q command 147
Qedit program 43, 65, 199
Qedit program and Suprlink 262, 265
Qhelp 102, 213, 268
QTP 256
QTP for subfile 45
QUERY "numbers" format 142
Query option 141 question mark, database password 63 question, delete all records 74
Quick help 102, 213, 268
Quiz report writer 44, 255, 271, 273 quote characters 106
Quote command 225 quotes, double 225 quotes, none 225 quotes, single 225
R random sampling 100, 121 range of fields 89 range, extracting 89 read only mode 161 reals, classic 32 record format, output 22 record length 32
Record Mode, List option 136 record number 121 record number selection 100, 121 record number, IMAGE 100 record number, Output 141 record number, XSORT 160 records, number of qualifying 145
Redo command 148, 226, 274
Redo, number of commands 148
Redo, Set 166, 228, 276 reduced output 162
Reflection 43 relative dates 113 relative field definitions 69 removing spaces 94, 112 repeated fields 107 reports 23
Reset command 151, 227, 275
ROBELLE variable 31, 192, 247
Roman-8 characters, HTML output 215
Roman-8 vs. ASCII 133 running out of disc space in sort 170 running STExport 191 running Suprlink 249
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual
S scientific format 209
SD files see self-describing files
SDUnix 39
Select command 152
Select command, Allbase rows 156
Select performance 152
Select, Long commands 152 selecting multiple values 105 selecting records 103 selection by date 113 selection logic 252 selection using arithmetic 108 self describing files, field name limit 41 self-describing file format 239, 281 self-describing files 39, 41, 79, 141, 252 semicolon means multiple commands 291 separator, dates 202 serial vs. chained read 67 session 43 session mode 285
Set Allbase 156
Set Arithmetic 156
Set Blocksize 156
Set Buffer 156
Set command, STExport 228
Set command, Suprlink 276
Set command, Suprtool 153
Set Date 158, 159
Set Date Cutoff 47, 157
Set Date Forcecentury 47, 158
Set Defer 159
Set Dumponerror 159
Set Eofread 159
Set Filecode 159
Set Firstrec 160
Set Hints 160
Set Ifcheck 160
Set Ignore 146, 160, 187
Set Itemabbreviatedate 160
Set Labelledtaperewind 161
Set Limits 161
Set List PCL 132, 162
Set Lock 163
Set Mapped 276 set name parameter 67, 100, 146
Set NLS 164
Set Openmode 164
Set Progress 165
Set Prompt, Suprtool 166
Set Sortfast 167, 168
Set Statistics, STExport 229
Set Statistics, Suprlink 277
Set Statistics, Suprtool 167
Set Varsub, STExport 277
Index
• 299
shell commands 30 shell script 217
Sign command 231 signed function 94 single quotes 225 slash 292
Software Research Northwest 125 software updates 4 son process 82, 207, 265 sort break totals 176
Sort command 169 sort information not retained 79 sort keys 252
Sortfast, Set option 167, 168 sorting files 43, 128
Spaces command 232 spaces, removing 94, 112 special characters 288 special string test 111 specifying input 67, 100, 120, 222, 269 spool file errors 187
SQL database, Allbase rows 156
SQL database, inserting records 62
SQL database, Select command 152
SQL database, specifying 139
SQL database, structure 98
SRN, Chronos date 125 startrecord parameter 100, 121
Statistics, Set option 167, 229, 277 stddate function 88, 114
Stdlist, input from 33
STExport 1, 84, 143 string constants 106, 291 string conversion 92 string expressions 110 string of digits 13 string replacement, Hpmodify 149 string truncation 93 string, as a delimiter 205 string, heading command 211 strings 287 stty 29 subfile script 45 subfiles, PowerHouse 45, 255 subscript parameter 85, 175, 288 subscript parameter, character 107 subscript parameter, Define 70 subscript parameter, numeric 107 substrings 107 subtotals 21, 78
Subtract Days 89 sum of field values 175 summary of STExport 193 summary of Suprlink 251
Super Cartridge 133
Suprhint.Help.Robelle 160
300
• Index
Suprlink 2, 141
Suprlink, using from Suprtool 249
Suprmgr files 29, 31
Suprtool in Suprlink 252, 270
Suprtool package 1
Suspend option on Exit 207, 265
T
Table command 171
Table command, decimal places 172 table, HTML option 214 tables 288 tables in Chain command 67 tables, holding between Xeqs 173 tables, maximum size 161 tape files 120 task 9, 35 terminology 246 third-party indexing 188 time format in List 134, 163
Time, Set List 163 title, HTML option 214
TMPDIR 56
TMPDIR variable 170 today function of Extract 87 today function of If 114
Total command 175
Total, output restrictions 80 totaling 21 totaling duplicate records 78 totals to a file 175 trailing sign 231 trimming spaces 94, 112 truncate function 92, 109 truncation, numeric 109 truncation, strings 93 two-digit years 48 type parameter 69, 70, 128
U
Undo edit, Hpmodify 149 unsigned value 94
Update command 163, 177 upper-case 93, 112 upshifting strings 93
Use command 178, 233, 278
Use command with If $read 119 user manual 190, 246 user specified heading 211
Userpause command 180
V
-v option 30
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual
value tests 104 variable length strings 93, 110 variable-length, output file 201
Varsub, Set option 277
Verify command 170, 181, 234, 279
W warning messages 188, 288 warning, delete all records 74
Web 214
Web server 216
What's Up, DOCumentation? newsletter 4
X
Xeq command, STExport 207, 235
Xeq command, Suprlink 265, 280
Xeq command, Suprtool 82, 182
Xeq option on Exit 82, 207, 265
XSORT 160
Y
Year 2000 158, 159
Year 2000 testing 55 yes answer to questions 187, 288 yes response in pseudo-batch 285 yyymmdd date format 124
Z
Zero command 238 zoned constants 86 zoned-decimal, illegal digits 254
Suprtool 4.6 for HP-UX User Manual Index
• 301
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